Team One Guardian Angels
by missblueeyes63
Summary: Each member of Team One is protected by a Guardian Angel. This is a collection of stand-alone chapter stories about events in Sam's and the Team's lives from the Guardian Angel's perspective. The first one is when Sam joins Team One. This collection spans Sam's entire life so there are pre & post series events too with Sam's JTF2 Unit GAs too.
1. Sam Joins Team One

**Team One Guardian Angels**

* * *

 _ **Summary**_ _:_ _Each member of Team One is protected by a Guardian Angel. This is a collection of stand-alone chapter stories about events in Sam's and the Team's lives from the Guardian Angel's perspective. The first one is when Sam joins Team One. This collection spans Sam's entire life so there are pre & post series events too with Sam's JTF2 Unit GAs too. _

_**Setting:** During Series: The day after the second episode of Flashpoint, First In Line, where Sam inadvertently sends in the heart after Ed goes all coffee shop on his ass._

 _ **Companion Piece:** None._

 _ **Guardian Angels: Hamon**_ _(Sam),_ _ **Rahmiel**_ _(J_ _ules),_ _ **Nanael**_ _(_ _Spike),_ _ **Hasdiel**_ _(_ _Greg),_ _ **Karael**_ _(_ _Ed),_ _ **Barrattiel**_ _(_ _Wordy),_ _ **Sablo**_ _(_ _Lou)_

 _ **AN:** Check out Chapter 10 of the __**Beauty of Life Reference**_ _if you would like to see details on the meanings of the guardian angel and fallen angels names. I've defined Guardian Angels for all the main Braddocks and all Sam's Unit buddies too. I've tried to pick names that fit their personalities._

 _I do not own Flashpoint or any of the characters from that series. I do own my original characters (OC) and the original content of the stories I write._

* * *

 **Sam Joins Team One**

* * *

 _ **SRU HQ – Briefing Room**_

Hasdiel and Karael were already floating around the briefing room looking at their charges when Barrattiel, Sablo and Rahmiel joined them. Everyone was almost here. The only one missing was Nanael.

Barrattiel sighed "You know I really could use a break."

Rahmiel laughed "Why is that Barrattiel?"

"You know why. I mean come on. After yesterday I'm about done. How many times do I have to save him? Wordy's a magnet for bullets. It took all my efforts to force Jack's guardian angel to move Jack's hand enough so the bullet went into the vest."

Sablo nodded "Yeah you could use a rest. I'm just so glad that Lou stays in the truck so often. I've got it pretty easy."

Nanael floated in as Spike entered the briefing room and said "So you all ready for another shift?"

Hasdiel said "Everyone but Barrattiel, he needs a rest."

Nanael laughed "Yeah Wordy keeps you on your toes huh. But you know Spike is no easy charge either. You have no clue how hard I work whispering in his ear when he is defusing bombs. I could use a rest too. I just hope today is bomb free."

Karael laughed "Yeah Spike does get rather happy when they have a bomb. There was like four in the last month. You were looking rather ragged."

Rahmiel stated "Karael, your charge is not so easy either. I swear you have you have restored that man's soul too many times."

Karael nodded "Yeah Ed is a handful. He tries to protect the others. He takes Sierra One so often so that Jules is spared from having to take the lethal shot. Rahmiel you charge's soul is too gentle to have to take too many lethal shots."

Rahmiel sighed "Jules is stronger than you think. Her headstrong ways though are a challenge. I mean it really took a lot out of me to keep Jules from actually shooting Sam when he pulled that dumb stunt of reaching for that picture in his pocket when he met her after the call in the plaza."

Karael groaned "Yeah, can you believe Sam is actually on this team?"

Hasdiel quickly stated "Hey none of that Karael. We are here to protect them all. We have our specific charges but we have to work as a team to keep them all safe. I don't know about the rest of you but I have been talking myself blue in the face to get Greg to treat the rookie better. I cannot seem to get through to him. It is frustrating me to no end."

"Sam doesn't belong on the team" Karael stated. "I mean have you even seen his guardian angel yet? No? I didn't think so. Sam must be a lost cause not to have a guardian angel watching over him."

Barrattiel blew out a frustrated breath "Karael, ease up. Maybe his guardian angel has other charges. I mean Sam did just start with SRU. He may not have a dedicated guardian angel like the rest of Team One has."

Sablo nodded in agreement "That could be true. I mean Sam has only gone on one call with them so far."

Rahmiel laughed "And Ed went all coffee shop on him. That was too funny. I had a hard time trying to keep Jules compassionate though. She really can't stand Sam right now." A small knowing smile crossed her face but she held her tongue.

Karael shook his head "Ed was not too nice but Sam was all about shoot first. Ed had to do something to make it clear to the rookie that SRU is different than the Special Forces. Sam needs to learn that SRU is about talking before shooting and actually saving lives instead of taking them."

"Yeah but that little stunt ended up causing me to work harder to keep Wordy alive. I mean Sam was down there because of Ed and that's why the heart was sent up. You need to keep Ed in line Karael, Wordy takes enough shots for the team" Barrattiel grumbled.

Karael's response was stalled when a rather ragged looking guardian angel floated in as Sam entered the briefing room. Team One's guardian angels just stared.

The guardian angel was in a terrible state. His wings drooped and were missing most of their feathers. His ethereal gown was ripped in many places, thread bare and in dire need of a cleaning. His face was gaunt and weary. The guardian angel simply ignored them and perched wearily on his charge's shoulder.

Hasdiel said "Hello I am Hasdiel, my charge is Greg Parker. Are you Sam's guardian angel?"

Hamon turned to the group of guardian angels. He observed that they were in a state of glory. Wings full and fluffed and not a single feather missing. Well not quite, each one of them had a few missing. But their ethereal gowns were in pristine condition and their faces shone with the good health and lightness of their charge's souls.

Sighing Hamon said "I'm Hamon, yes Sam is my charge."

Barrattiel floated over "You don't look so good. You must have an awful lot of charges to look so weary."

Nanael remarked "Hamon, Hamon, sounds familiar. Wait you are the beautiful prince angel. What happened to you? You know you should probably ask for fewer charges. You are not looking so beautiful."

Hamon sighed "Not possible."

Concerned Sablo asked "Why?"

Hamon looked at each of them and then answered "I have but one charge."

Rahmiel's mouth dropped open then she said "You look like that and you only have one charge. Why have we not seen you before today? Where were you yesterday? Your charge could have used your guidance."

Hamon floated up a little bit but did not move too far away from Sam "I did not have enough energy to show myself to you. Sam required all the energy I had. There is no down time with Sam. It is a constant struggle to keep the demons at bay. Every night it is a real challenge to keep his finger off the trigger of the pearl handled colt."

All the guardian angels sucked in an ethereal breath.

Rahmiel asked "The one in the picture he reached for when Jules almost shot him?"

Hamon nodded "Yeah. Ever since Sam accidentally shot his best friend it has been a real challenge to keep him in the light."

The guardian angels all looked at Hamon then they looked at Sam. They really looked this time.

Ed's guardian angel, Karael looked closely and noted "He has fought many demons. Sam has a wounded soul that needs healing."

Spike's guardian angel, Nanael sadly frowned "He looks so lonely. Sam needs a new best friend."

Wordy's guardian angel, Barrattiel said "He is careworn. Sam needs comfort and to be accepted and shown he is loved."

Lou's guardian angel, Sablo remarked "He needs help to move from the darkness that is trying to overtake his soul. Sam needs to save people to save himself."

Greg's guardian angel Hasdiel stated "He is lost and hurting right now. Sam needs a family and place to belong."

Jules' guardian angel, Rahmiel smiled "He needs someone to love him. You want to know a secret Hamon?"

Hamon sighed seeing that he was no longer alone. For years he had the support of Sam's unit buddy's guardian angels. They all worked together to keep his soul intact and keep him as safe as possible. It was no easy task even with all of them working together.

But since Sam left JTF2 Hamon had been alone. Hamon was afraid that he would lose his charge's soul to the darkness that threatened to consume him. But there appeared to be hope now. Hamon could see that he had help again. He was thankful that Sam had been guided to the SRU and to Team One in particular.

Sam's guardian angel, Hamon gave a lopsided smile to Rahmiel and asked "What is the secret?"

Rahmiel gazed at that smile and something clicked. She blinked rapidly then said "I remember you. We met once before when Jules was nine and Sam was six."

Hamon nodded as the memory came to the forefront "I remember that. Is that the secret?"

"Nope" Rahmiel said with a playful grin.

Nanael urged "Come one Rahmiel, what's the secret?"

Rahmiel leaned forward and whispered to Hamon.

Hamon's face split into a radiant WOW smile. His energy surged and several of his feathers were restored.

Nanael was bursting with anticipation "Rahmiel, what did you tell him? Come on … Rahmiel?"

Hamon looked at Rahmiel and shook his head. Then he turned to the others and said "You'll just have to wait to find out."

Rahmiel ran her fingers through Hamon's blonde hair and saw that his ethereal blue eyes lost the haunted look and now sparkled with renewed energy. She knew that with the knowledge she had shared that Hamon would be able to sustain his charge and see him through his trying days.

Team One was Sam's reward for so many trails he had and would endure in his life. And there was beauty here for Sam too but he would have to be patient.

.

* * *

 _ **AN:**_ _Okay a little out there I know. I figured the guardian angels would know early on what Sam needed. Although their charges have minds of their own and don't accept Sam right off the bat, I can picture the guardian angels whispering in their ears until they actually hear and begin to provide what Sam needs. I'm sure you all can guess the secret. Let me know what you thought._


	2. Eagle Two & Changing of the Guard

**Eagle Two & Changing of the Guard**

* * *

 _ **Setting:** During Series: Occurs in season one during the episode Eagle Two. _

_**Companion Piece:** None._

 _ **Guardian Angels: Hamon**_ _(Sam),_ _ **Rahmiel**_ _(J_ _ules),_ _ **Nanael**_ _(_ _Spike),_ _ **Hasdiel**_ _(_ _Greg),_ _ **Karael**_ _(_ _Ed),_ _ **Barrattiel**_ _(_ _Wordy),_ _ **Sablo**_ _(_ _Lou), **New Guardian Angel** (read to find out)_

* * *

 _ **SRU HQ – Briefing Room**_

Nanael floated over to Hamon with a huge grin "What a blessed day this is. I'm so glad to see Sam looking so well and back with the team."

Hamon grinned and said "It is a great day. He worked so hard, so very hard to recover his lung capacity."

Barrattiel floated over and added "Hamon I have not seen you looking so full of glory ever. I see most of your feathers have been restored."

Sablo remarked "Sam's good health and the restoration of his soul have done a lot for you Hamon."

"It was a team effort. I'm so grateful that Sam understands now that his family has always loved and cared about him. Those were some lean and trying years when he was estranged from his family. The little angel has tried to help for years but Sam could never hear her. I'm glad that Sara Clarry's guardian angel was able to help her to help Sam to finally hear the little angel and know that his soul was safe" Hamon stated.

The angels all nodded, grateful for the intervention in the alleyway behind Bennie's Gas Station. Then they turned their attention to Greg and listened to the briefing. When Ed walked in wearing a suit they all smiled.

"Karael, whoa your charge cleans up nice" Barrattiel teased.

Grinning Karael responded "Yes he does. I'm trying to work something special for date night for him. Ed and Sophie deserve to have a special night."

Hamon leaned over to Rahmiel and whispered "Archangel Gabriel spoke with me this morning. I'm being transferred to another charge."

Rahmiel gave a sorrowful look "When?" She liked Hamon a lot.

"Sometime today. I wish I could be around to watch it develop but I've been assigned a new charge" Hamon said a little sadly.

Rahmiel nodded "Yeah me too. You have done an awesome job with your charge. I'm gonna miss you Hamon. Do you know who your new charge is?

Hamon grinned "Actually I have a little break before I take over."

"Why? Not that you do not deserve a break but why?" Rahmiel asked.

"My new charges are yet to be born" Hamon answered. "Twins. And I will still get to see Sam occasionally. My new charges are Sam's niece and nephew. It should be interesting watching over twins. I've never done that before" Hamon admitted.

Rahmiel smiled "Ah so you get to stay with the family. Nice. Do you know who will be taking over for you?"

Hamon gave her a radiant smile "Uh huh. He is a perfect fit for Sam. He has been groomed specifically for Sam's special needs."

"Really?" Rahmiel questioned. That didn't happen often. It was so rare that it only happened a few times in the millennia. "Do tell. Who was that special to be granted that honor?"

"You'll see. So Jules gets to wear a suit? That is sure to pique Sam's interest today" Hamon said to deflect further inquiries from Rahmiel.

Rahmiel sighed knowing that Hamon would not reveal Sam's new angel and whispered "Today is going to be hard on Jules."

Hamon nodded knowingly. Ever since Rahmiel shared her knowledge of Sam and Jules future they had taken to sharing small tidbits of their charge's planned trials. It helped them help their charge's gain insight on the other. A little whispered tidbit here or there let them know when the other needed help. Hamon hoped Sam's new guardian angel would work just as effectively with Rahmiel to keep their charges heading in the direction fate had decreed.

Sablo floated over to Hasdiel and grinned "I see that Greg listened to your whispers. It's nice to see him mentoring Sam just like Lou. It's nice him giving Sam an opportunity to second him today. Sam needs to learn to utilize his skills differently to keep his soul intact."

Hasdiel nodded "Yes but I have to tell you it was really Karael's idea. He whispered to Ed to suggest to Greg that Sam be his second today. We can all see that Ed is really trying to understand Sam. Sometimes it is so difficult for those two to mesh."

Karael joined them and said "That is because they are so alike in many ways. Ed cares for Sam and just cannot understand why Sam takes so many risks with his own life. I try to tell him to just accept that that is who Sam is but Ed resists accepting that. Mostly it is because he cares so much. Too bad it puts them in conflict so often."

He turned to Hamon and said "You think you can ever get Sam to take fewer risks?"

Hamon grinned "Nope. Sam was made that way. Ed will just have to accept that is the way Sam is. No less than Sam has to accept that Ed will never stop trying to get him to take fewer risks. I fear those two are destined to be at odds a lot. But they will eventually come to an understanding."

* * *

 _ **Royal York Hotel**_

When the team arrived for protection detail at the Royal York Hotel a new guardian angel watched from afar what transpired during the day. He needed to understand the team and watch the other guardian angels in action. They were all good.

As guardian angels, they could not change major events destined by fate, but through their whispers and sometimes through extreme use of energy they could make small changes. He watched as Hasdiel guided Greg giving him insight when needed; whispering to Greg to listen to Sam's assessment of the situation.

It was funny when Hasdiel caused Greg to turn in time to watch Sam check out Jules. Oh brother, Sam would need to watch that behavior at work from now on. He almost wanted to float down and try and intervene. But Sam was still Hamon's charge at the moment. The transition would happen soon though.

He watched Nanael give courage to Spike as he defused the bomb around Mrs. Graham's neck. It helped to calm Spike and allow him to calm her too. It was nice to see the Mrs. Graham's guardian angel whispering to her charge to be confident in Spike's abilities and to have compassion for the maid.

As Jules stormed out of the hotel he watched. It made him sad to see how upset Jules was. He turned to Hamon as he approached "Jules is so upset. It wasn't her fault but she is beating herself up over it."

Hamon nodded feeling the same way but there was nothing he could do. He sighed, the time had come to hand Sam over to his new guardian angel. It was bittersweet for Hamon. With a little sadness Hamon said "Sam is in your charge now. Take care of him. Sam is special."

He nodded and reassured Hamon "I know. I will. I promise you that Sam will flourish under my watchful eyes and gently whispered words. Thank you for all you have done for him over the years Hamon."

"My pleasure. Oh by the way, Rahmiel will be a good ally. She has a secret I'm sure she will be willing to share with you" Hamon said.

"I know already. In some ways I've always known" he stated cheerfully as his eyes twinkled with delight.

Then he floated down to Sam. Finally! He had been itching all day to take over. He whispered urgently "Go after her Sam. Offer to drive her home."

He grinned as Sam went after Jules to offer to give her a ride home.

Rahmiel had her hands full. She was whispering desperately in Jules' ear "It was not your fault. You need to forgive yourself. Everyone went home safe. This was destined to happen. David Graham needed to speak what he did to heal his soul. It was a burden he carried far too long. His wife will help him heal now. It was not your fault."

She pulled back after saying what she needed and saw a new guardian angel whispering to Sam. She smiled as Sam approached Jules and offered to take her home. Rahmiel whispered urgently "Accept his ride Jules."

Rahmiel watched as the new angel whispered to Sam "Kiss her Sam. Kiss her well and true. Jules is your beauty of life. I promised you she existed."

She quickly whispered to Jules "It's time. Kiss Sam. Kiss him back. Take him home tonight. He is the one for you."

The new angel looked at Rahmiel and smiled "Hi I'm Sam's new guardian angel."

Rahmiel chuckled "I kind of figured that. I hear you were trained especially for Sam. I'm Rahmiel. What should I call you?"

As he watched Sam and Jules kissing right there in front of the hotel his emerald green eyes twinkled with the beauty of life. He grinned at Rahmiel and said "My name is Matthew but you can call me Matt."

.

* * *

 _ **AN:**_ _Hope you liked. I'm sure most of you figured out who Sam's new guardian angel was before the last line though. Hamon definitely deserved a break and Sam's soul is in the right care with Matt. Matt's mother always told him he was a gift from god and she was right._


	3. A Broken Bone Saved Sam's Soul

**A Broken Bone Saved Sam's Soul**

* * *

 _ **Setting:** Post Series: Occurs during the Stag and Hen parties for Mason and Marsaili while Sam and Jules are in Scotland._

 _ **Companion Piece:** Chapter 13 of **A Year and A Day**_

 _ **Guardian Angels: Matt** (Sam), **Rahmiel**_ _(_ _Jules), **Ripsaw**_ _(_ _Jim)_

* * *

 _ **Road to Old Castle Tavern**_

Matt floated near Sam and whispered "Drink, drink, drink. More. Come on. Down the beer and start another one."

Ripsaw looked at Matt "What the heck are you doing. Trying to get Sammy boy drunk?"

Matt stopped a moment and said "No but he has to drink more."

"Why?" Ripsaw asked as he floated near Jim.

"Gotta make him need to pee. Beer runs through him so he has to drink" Matt stated.

"Why?" Ripsaw asked again. He remembered now that Blondie and beer did not stay together long.

Matt urged Sam to drink more, faster, more. Then he turned to Ripsaw "It's important he get to the tavern quickly. It's the only way I know how to get him there."

Ripsaw whispered in Jim's ear "Give Sam another beer."

 _Jim looked at Sam and saw his beer was empty. He handed Sam a third beer "Running dry there Sam. Have another."_

 _Sam took the third beer and decided he better slow down. They were still a ways away from the tavern. If he wasn't careful he'd end up needing to relieve himself soon. And he was not doing that on the side of the road in the wide open area where any passing car could see him. But then he found himself taking swig after swig as they walked, laughed and joked along the way._

 _A thought popped into Sam's head. He should see if Marsaili and the gals had arrived. They had left earlier to visit one of Marsaili's aunts to get something old for her wedding dress. They were supposed to be there when Mason arrived so he could beg Marsaili for a kiss._

"Drink Sammy, drink. Come on finish it" Matt said.

 _Sam took another swig and found the beer was gone. Wow that was faster than he normally drank. Oh well it was a bachelor party after all._

In a sing song voice Matt began to chant "Prince Ali, gotta go pee very, very badly. Prince Ali, gotta go pee very, very badly. Prince Ali, gotta go pee very, very badly."

Ripsaw laughed "What the heck you doing now?"

Matt stopped his chant and looked at Ripsaw like he was dumb "Power of suggestion."

Ripsaw laughed again as Matt took up his chanting in Sam's ear again. Matt was too darned funny sometimes. Ripsaw was thinking that he wished he had the same insight Matt seemed to have. Matt seemed to know exactly when to urge Sam to do something. He had a lot of pull with Sam's inner voice too.

He knew those two were connected in life. It was a bond that bewildered him at first. Ripsaw had to admit, when he first joined the unit he thought that Matt might be gay and have a thing for Sam. But that was not the case. It was that they were connected at the soul. It was like Matt's sole purpose on earth was to befriend Sam and nurture him. To help Sam develop the skills he would need to survive and to help others without imploding himself.

 _Sam was becoming uncomfortable. He had to pee badly. Sam turned to Jim and said "I'm gonna run ahead and check if Marsaili and the girls made it to the bar yet."_

 _Jim nodded "Hit the head too Sam. Your eyes are turning yellow."_

 _All the guys laughed. They knew exactly why Sam was jogging ahead of them. Three beers in an hour and Sam would need to go._

 _Sam shrugged at their laughter. Yeah they knew why he was running a head. So what? He turned and jogged backwards a bit and said "Add a few more rocks to Mason's creel. He's not working up enough sweat." He turned forward as he heard Mason grumble something about making him pay for all of this._

* * *

 _ **Old Castle Tavern**_

Rahmiel was yelling "Down Jules down. Duck, duck." But Jules was too concentrated on making sure the big guy did not get up and hurt Sam again. Rahmiel was not getting through to Jules.

Matt yelled at Sam "Go now. Plant your feet on his shins. NOW!"

As Sam fell Matt used every ounce of his ethereal energy to grab Sam's arm and yank it high. He hated doing this. He hated that Sam would be in pain, physical pain. But it was worth it. Matt would rather have Sam in pain this way than have Sam see what would happen to Jules if the punch connected with her head.

Craigmuir was yelling at his charge not to punch. His charge was not listening to him. He never did. Robbie was a dunderhead. Robbie was gonna kill that little woman if he connected with her head. Robbie had fists like hammers. Craigmuir just wished Robbie had brains. When he drank with his buddies Robbie was a complete huddy.

Matt actually felt the force of the hit as Robbie's fist connected with Sam's right arm. He heard the snap of the bone and prayed that the pain would not be too great. Matt fell under Sam and pushed him up quickly. He lay on the floor, his ethereal energy needing badly to rejuvenate.

Rahmiel floated close and helped Matt up. Her face had lost its glow too and her wings were sagging a bit as she said "Thank you Matt. I could not get Jules to hear me."

Matt shook his head "They are always so focused on the other. They could both use a greater dose of self-preservation."

Rahmiel nodded "At least they have each other. But you know this was supposed to be a time for them to rejuvenate. Sam is really putting you through the wringer here."

Matt just smiled "Whatever goes on here is worth it. Sam found peace here. The blessing from the Lady Wilhemina made the whole trip worth it."

Rahmiel smiled knowingly then said "Yes this trip was worth it. Especially with what is coming for their wedding day in Toronto."

Matt's smile faded a bit "Don't remind me. Let me bask in the peace that they both have right now. When everything is good and right in their world. Before everything changes for them again."

Rahmiel nodded and said "Time for us to both fade and re-charge now."

Looking at Sam sitting on the floor with his right arm close to his stomach, Matt nodded. He whispered "Sorry about the wrist brother but the alternative was something you would have never recovered from. Be good while I'm re-charging."

Matt faded into nothingness to re-charge as Blaze and Jim were helping Sam into a chair. Sam may have a broken wrist but Jules was alive. Matt knew his brother would not have survived if Jules had been hit.

The darkness would have claimed Sam's soul and nothing Matt could have done would have prevented it. A broken bone saved Sam's soul.


	4. Yankee Has Sam's Six

**Yankee Has Sam's Six**

* * *

 _ **Setting:** Pre Series: Occurs during the mission where Sam joins Yankee's unit and Sam calls in an artillery strike on his location in order to protect valuable intel from falling into terrorists hands._

 _ **Companion Piece:** Chapter 26 of **Alphabet Injuries -** **Ys in Sam's Life: Yvonne, Yankee & Yo-Yo**_

 _ **Guardian Angels: Hamon** (Sam)_

* * *

 _ **Somewhere Outside Kandahar – Meeting Location**_

He was floating and felt no more pain. He felt warmth and love and a sense of peace. It was a complete change from the intense pain, chaos and fear he had just felt just a moment ago. He looked about and smiled as he was enveloped in a hug. Many, many came to him and hugged and welcomed him.

So many he had missed for a long time; friends and family alike. Once he was greeted he looked down at his body. It was a bloody mess. He could see where someone had tried to stop the massive bleeding. There was pressure bandages wrapped tightly around his legs. It didn't do any good.

Then he looked around and saw six other groups of people greeting six other men warmly. He blinked wondering who they were. But then he saw the other bodies lying on the floor. Their earthly bodies were riddled with bullets. But like him, here and now, they were whole and unharmed and they were smiling as they were greeted.

Then he saw a seventh group standing off to one side. They were not greeting anyone but were staring down at someone.

Yankee's eyes tracked down to where their eyes were looking. Everything slammed back into place. No. No. Please no. He was too young to join them. Yankee had promised Blaze to have his back.

Sadness entered his heart as he looked upon Blondie. He was sitting there talking to someone with a laptop open. He watched as Blondie set it down. Then he watched as Blondie's face screwed up in pain as he felt for a pulse on his earthly body.

 _As Sam pounded his fist on the ground he yelled "Yankee. God dammit no! You were supposed to hang on."_

Yankee then watched him crawl to the window and the pallor of defeat cross his face. Blondie crawled back to his earthly body and slumped against the wall near him. Yankee saw the look of sadness and intense pain on Sam's face.

He disengaged from the family and friends that greeted him and floated closer to Blondie. No. Please no. I was supposed to protect him. But he ran to try and save me.

The kid should have listened to him. He should have run. Yankee looked to the group waiting for Blondie. They looked sad, not happy. Especially one little girl. She had the biggest green eyes and they were filled with tears. She was held in the arms of an older man who had the same blue eyes as Sam.

Yankee recalled the man now. It was William's father, Brigadier General Arthur Winchester Braddock. He heard the little girl wail "Not yet. I don't want Sammy to die yet. Sammy has to be happy first. Sammy needs to know Mommy and Daddy love him. Noooooooo."

He watched an older woman gently stroke her hair "It will be okay Sara. We are here for him. Sammy will know he is so loved."

The little green eyed girl shook her head "No."

She wiggled out of Brigadier General Braddock's arms and raced for Blondie. She clung to him and said "I don't want Sammy to die."

 _Sam didn't want to die but knew he could not let the intel get into the terrorist's hands. In a monotone voice he called out "Ops Command. Request a fire order my position. Hundreds of insurgents. Unable to exfil self. Yankee gone. Intel cannot be allowed into their hands. Fire for effect."_

Then Yankee saw an awe inspiring sight. The most handsome man that was not really a man appeared next to Blondie. An ethereal glow surrounded him and he had wings. His wings were glorious and huge.

Hamon floated close to the little girl and spoke softly "Sara. I cannot change what is to be. I have tried but I can do no more. Sam and you will be reunited today. He will see that you are alright and have been loved and cared for by all your family. It will be okay little one."

Sara shook her head and held on tighter "No. Mommy and Daddy and Matt need him. Nattie too. No. No."

Hamon tried to gently remove Sara "Time to let go little one. I will shield him so he does not feel more pain before he dies. Please Sara let go."

Yankee stood dumbfounded watching this. Blondie just called an artillery fire down on his position. He was alive but he was willing to sacrifice himself.

Tufail Yamin floated over to Yankee and said "He is a young brave one. I hope the information he shared will bring peace to my people."

Yankee watched as Sam put a yo-yo string on his finger. He let the yo-yo roll away from him. Sam's next words stabbed his heart

 _Sam whispered "Sorry I can't teach you how to yo-yo Matt. Sorry your yo-yo is gonna get blown to bits too."_

Yankee looked up as Arthur Braddock pulled Sara away from Sam and started to carry her away. She was screaming 'no' as tears fell in rivers from her big green eyes.

Arthur Braddock could not console Sara and said "Gwyneth would you hold Sara please?" as he handed her off and then turned to look at his grandson.

He was sad his grandson's life was going to be so short. He was an honorable man. His son William had done a fine job raising him. It saddened him that William's line of Braddock's would end with Samuel's death.

Looking at his father, Arthur said "Dad I don't want him to die either."

Winchester Braddock looked at his son then turned to look at his great-grandson. He had hoped Samuel would find some happiness in the world before he died. Partly he did with Matt. He looked back at his son "Arthur there is nothing we can do but be here with open arms to welcome him. It is out of our hands."

Rosemary Loving clung to her husband Alastair "He's too young Alastair. Too young. Sammy has yet to really live. He should have a chance to find a woman to love and have children. He should not have to die here all alone."

Alastair held Rosemary "Sammy is not alone. We are here for him sweetheart."

Yankee watched and listened to all then he saw the angel spread his wings wide and kneel down next to Sam.

Hamon looked at his charge with tears in his eyes. He had worked so long and so hard to keep him in the earthly world. But some things were just beyond his control. Hamon whispered "Sam you will feel no pain. I will hold you."

He looked at those waiting and said "It will not be long now."

Hamon's wings folded around Sam enclosing him completely. Then everyone heard an angel weep. It was a heart wrenching sound.

Yankee wiped a tear. He had promised Blaze to watch over Sam. Something deep surged in him and Yankee ran towards Sam. If the angel could protect Sam from pain with his wings Yankee would add a layer of protection too.

As he knelt down Yankee called out "Sara come help me protect Sam."

Yankee was not entirely sure why he called to the little emerald eyed girl. But she squirmed out of her grandmother's arms and ran to him.

Arthur watched Sara run. He had no idea who that man was other than by the name Sam had called. Yankee. But the man wanted to protect Sam. Arthur found himself racing forward and adding himself to the protective layer. He looked up at his father.

Winchester Braddock watched his great-granddaughter and son cling to Sam. Something magical happened and before he could stop himself he was there too. But he was not alone. Everyone that had come to meet Sam and the man named Yankee piled on over and around Sam.

Yamin watched in awe and as the first blast struck. Then he and his family all raced forward and guided the large section of wall that fell down so that it created a safe pocket shielding the brave young man.

Four more blasts rocked the earthly world and in the end Sam was shielded by everyone who had just died and everyone that had come to greet their family member or friend.

Never had this happened before; never had so many tried to save just one.

When the blasts were over, most of them faded away.

Hamon was stunned as he looked down at Sam. He survived the blasts. Hamon could only breath out three words "Thank you Lord."

Yankee stood looking down at Sam. He was alive. Somehow he had survived against all odds. He smiled. Yankee turned to look at Sara when he heard her giggle.

Sara crouched down in the rubble and brushed the dust away from the yo-yo. It was green. The one she gave Sammy was yellow.

She looked up at Yankee and said happily "Sammy's gonna teach Matt how to play with a yo-yo now."

Yankee nodded "Yes he is. Thank you Sara."

Sara stood up and walked to him. She looked up at him with big, innocent, green eyes "Wanna go see Rosie? She's gonna grow up knowing her Daddy loves her."

His heart lurched a bit. But then warmth enveloped it and he knew that Rosie would be loved and would know him through Mary. He nodded to Sara and took her little hand.

Just before he faded Yankee took one more look at Sam.

 _Sam's eyes fluttered open. He must be dead. There was no other explanation for what he saw. "Yankee?"_

Yankee grinned and said "I promised Blaze I would have your six kid. You hang on until they get here. That is a direct order."

 _Sam automatically answered "Wilco." Then his eyes closed._


	5. When Angels Fly

**When Angels Fly**

* * *

 _ **Setting:** During Series: Hot call sometime during season four a few months before **More Than Just Friends** begins._

 _ **Companion Piece:** None really, but it was inspired by Chapter 10 of **MTJF** when Spike imagines Lou as Spike thinks he is going to die. _

_**Guardian Angels: Matt**_ _(Sam),_ _ **Rahmiel**_ _(J_ _ules),_ _ **Nanael**_ _(_ _Spike),_ _ **Hasdiel**_ _(_ _Greg),_ _ **Karael**_ _(_ _Ed),_ _ **Barrattiel**_ _(_ _Wordy), **Guardian Angel in Training** (read to find out)_

* * *

 _ **Top of the Cliff**_

Matt watched Sam as he cuffed the men. That had been some run that Sam, Wordy and Ed had done to corner these eight dirtbags. Matt knew he needed to be more charitable. The men's souls were not completely corrupt. They could still find the light.

But Matt had a hard time with that aspect of being an angel. Especially when dirtbags, there was that term he should not use again, tried to deal drugs to kids disguised as candy. Disgusting.

Barrattiel and Karael floated near Wordy and Ed as they held their guns on the subjects. They shared a look as they watched Matt float near Sam. Neither was happy that Sam was so close to the edge. But Matt was close to Sam.

Karael called out "Matt, whisper to Sam to move away from the edge." Then he whispered to Ed "Move the subjects away from the edge. Come on move them. Hear me Ed. Listen."

 _Ed felt a buzzing in his ear. He wanted to swat at the fly or whatever it was causing the buzzing. But his hands remained on his weapon. He was covering Sam. With eight subjects and Sam so close to them it was important to keep focused. One of the subjects could bolt or hurt Sam_.

Barrattiel whispered to Wordy "Move the subjects. Sam is too close to the edge. He is at too much risk. Please hear me Wordy."

 _Wordy watched Sam closely. His gut was churning. This location was not so good. He was glad that Sam was efficiently cuffing the subjects. Luckily he had only found one pocket knife so far and slipped it into his own pocket then zip-tied the next one. Wordy wanted to get Sam to move away from the edge but he had two more men to search and cuff. So he remained silent._

Matt looked up at Karael and Barrattiel. He smiled. There was no way he could do his job without the help of Karael, Barrattiel, Nanael, Hasdiel and most especially Rahmiel.

That was one thing that he had learned when he took over from Hamon. Hamon relied heavily on all the other guardian angels, both Team One and the Unit to keep Sam relatively safe and within the earthly world.

Hamon had shared with him the wondrous thing that happened when Sam called the air strike on his location years ago when Yankee died. How so many had come together to protect Sam. It now made sense to Matt how Sam had survived something no one should have survived.

He remembered seeing the green yo-yo that alerted him that Sam was there. Little Sara had managed to use her ethereal energy to dust it off so it would be visible to him. Matt smiled thinking of Sara.

She was so precious and so loved by all the Guardian Angels. Although not a guardian angel herself, little Sara occasionally visited Sam. Mostly in his dreams. She tried so hard to get him to release the guilt he felt for her death.

Matt found out that Sara had managed a little bit when she had whispered to Sara Clarry in the alley behind Beanie's gas station. Little Sara had gotten through to the little girl and the little girl had gotten through to Sam. Her message was simple, your soul is safe. Little Sara wanted her brother to know he was not going to hell.

Watching Sam cuff the last dirtbag, subject that is, Matt's attention was caught by an angel he had never seen before. Wait. Wait. No. It couldn't be.

Matt grinned. Hot damn! Oops, he wasn't supposed to use cuss words anymore.

He was about to call out to the new angel when he sensed something and turned back to Sam.

Sam's boot slipped on the icy patch. Sam started to fall.

Matt swooped behind Sam and spread his wings as he called out "Karael, Barrattiel, HELP ME!"

Matt's wings were ineffective in this position but he flapped them anyways trying desperately to slow Sam's fall. As he held onto Sam, Matt was angry with himself for not paying better attention. Karael had told him to whisper in Sam's ear and he did not. He had been too distracted by his thoughts. Mistakes like these could cost Sam his life.

Karael and Barrattiel swooped down and each grabbed a hold of Sam. They spread their wings wide and flapped quickly, assisting Matt in slowing Sam's descent down the cliff.

The new angel brought his wings tight to his side and dive bombed down rapidly. He got below Matt and Sam then spread his glorious shining ebony wings. He flapped them vigorously creating enough of a breeze that it nudged Matt and Sam in the direction of a little ledge. It was barely big enough for Sam.

* * *

 _ **Ledge on a Cliff**_

Matt wrapped his wings around Sam as they slammed into the ledge. If angels had breath and breathed all the wind would have been expelled from Matt's lungs. But they did not and Matt took the brunt of Sam's weight as they smashed into snow covered the rocky ledge.

Karael and Barrattiel looked down at Sam as they released him. Were they in time? Did they slow him down enough?

Barrattiel sighed heavily "Why did Wordy not listen? He always listens."

Karael grabbed Barrattiel and said "We need to get back up there before Ed does something stupid. He's gonna be thinking this is all his fault. Matt you got Sam?"

Matt kept his wings folded around Sam. He was waiting for Sam's first intake of breath. Matt was praying that his inattention did not just cause Sam's death.

When he heard Sam inhale, Matt said "Thank you Lord. I promise to be attentive. Thank you for sparing him." Then Matt looked at Karael and Barrattiel "Thank you too. I would not have been able to slow him enough."

Karael and Barrattiel looked at the new angel and as Karael spread his wings to fly up to the top of the cliff he said "You have him to thank. He guided you and Sam to the ledge."

Barrattiel spread his wings to return to Wordy and smiled at the new angel "Good to see you. Will we be seeing more of you or is this just a visit?"

Floating near the ledge and looking at Sam the new angel said "Training session, not quite ready for my charge yet." Then he looked at Matt and said "Sorry I distracted you. I just wanted to see all of them."

Matt nodded then whispered to Sam "Breathe, just breathe. You are going to be okay. I didn't let you fall …" then he added "… all the way."

Barrattiel was nearly to the top when he said "Good job for your training session. You just helped save Sam."

* * *

 _ **Top of the Cliff**_

Rahmiel stayed close to Jules as she looked out over the edge. She whispered "Don't worry Sam is alive. It is okay to look. Look to your left, a little more, a little more. There, right there. Do you see him?"

 _Jules called out "I see him. I see Sam. He is on a ledge. He's not moving."_

Karael looked a Rahmiel "Good that Jules listens to you. Ed refuses to listen sometimes. He can be so stubborn."

Rahmiel said softly "Ed has a good heart. He was focusing on making sure the subjects did not get the drop on Sam and hurt him. You will need to work hard to help him release the guilt he will feel over this accident."

Karael nodded "Yeah. Yeah I am. He holds onto guilt almost as stubbornly as Sam."

* * *

 _ **Running Through the Woods**_

Nanael gripped Spike's shoulders and spread his wings. He beat them furiously flying and lifting Spike slightly off the ground. His efforts sped Spike on his way. With his help Spike made it to the cliff faster than ever.

 _Spike dropped the gear and panted. My god he had never ran so fast in his entire life. It almost felt as if his feet did not touch the ground. How the heck did he do that?_

 _Greg patted Spike and said "I think you ran faster than Sam."_

 _Spike grinned but set to work on setting up the rappelling gear. They needed to get to Sam fast. They had no idea how badly he was hurt. Twenty feet was a long way down. Sam was probably in critical condition. He had to have at least several cracked, if not broken ribs. Fear for Sam's life was probably what made him run so fast._

Hasdiel patted Nanael on the back "Good job helping Spike run so fast. That took a lot out of you. You need a rest."

Nanael shook his head "No. I need to cover Spike. See he is going to be holding Jules."

The new angel floated up and said to Nanael "I can do it. Nothing like on the job training."

Nanael smiled "Okay. I'll be right with you though."

* * *

 _ **Ledge on a Cliff**_

Matt gently held Sam as he whispered "Relax Sammy, drift off to sleep. It will hurt less. Sleep now. Good."

Rahmiel came down with Jules. She had one hand holding Jules as her wings lightly flapped. She whispered "See he is sleeping. Nice and even breathing. Sam is going to be okay. Stay professional now. Keep it light. Humor will help Sam. That's how you can help him right now. Tease him."

Karael yelled "Ed stop. You cannot startle Sam."

 _Jules stayed Ed's hand "That might startle him."_

 _Ed blew out a breath. He was so upset that he did not assess the risk properly and move the subjects and that Sam was hurt because of it, that he had forgotten he could not startle Sam awake. He was not on point lately. Jules had just prevented him from making another serious mistake._

 _He said "Forgot about that. That would be bad. Let's get the safety line attached to his vest first."_

Karael blew out a breath "Rahmiel, thank goodness Ed listened to Jules. Why am I having such a hard time getting through to Ed lately?"

Rahmiel was thoughtful for a moment then replied "Could be that Ed is a bit sleep deprived. Having an infant is tough. Ed is trying so hard to be everything to everybody. He wants so badly to make Sophie happy but he feels the same level of responsibility to the team he always has. It is a tough balancing act for him right now. Have more patience with Ed. He needs your support right now."

Karael nodded. He whispered to Ed "Humor. Use humor right now. It will help you and the rest of your team."

 _Ed held out the collar and said "I'm gonna put this on and I'm seriously considering attaching a leash to it. You scared the hell out of us."_

 _Sam thought, scared the hell out of myself too. But he said lightly "What am I your puppy now?"_

 _Chuckling Ed replied "Something like that. Gotta do something to train you to not take unacceptable risks."_

Rahmiel grinned "See Ed listens to you."

Karael laughed "Yeah I guess he does."

* * *

 _ **Hospital – ER Waiting Room**_

The new angel floated next to Spike. He was getting the hang of this. He had been able to keep Spike calm and steady. He looked at Jules and saw her shaking a bit so he whispered "Jules does not look so good buddy. She could use some of your support right now."

Not knowing what all the other angels knew or figured out he added "Looks like adrenaline crash is coming. Maybe you should get something sugary for her."

 _Spike headed off to the nurses' break room. He was no longer shy about going and grabbing a juice or a package of animal crackers. Clare had shown him where they were and he could see that Jules was a bit shaky. Her adrenaline drop must be very hard for her to be this shaky. Coffee would not be the best for her right now so he headed out to get juice and cookies._

Nanael looked at the new angel and smiled. Little did he know why Jules was shaky. Although Matt and Rahmiel never shared their secret Nanael figured it out. Sam and Jules were meant to be together. Jules was shaky because she was terribly worried about Sam but trying very hard to be professional and not give away that she and Sam were more than just friends.

As the team discussed the arrangements for Sam Nanael whispered in Spike's ear "Suggest Sam stay with Jules."

The new angel looked at Nanael. Why would he say that to Spike? Then he was further confused when he heard Karael and Hasdiel whisper to their charges.

Karael floated close to Ed and whispered "Concede the point. Clark is practicing. Izzy cries. It would not be restful for Sam. Jules' home is the best place for Sam right now."

Hasdiel whispered to Greg "Tell Jules to take tomorrow off. Sam needs someone to watch over him. Jules is the best person to do that. Sam listens to her. He will take the pain meds from her."

 _Spike perked up and said "So Jules' home it is. I'll help you get Sam home and settled in your guest room then run to his apartment and grab him some things."_

 _Jules allowed a small smile and said "Sounds good Spike."_

 _Greg said "Jules I think you should take tomorrow off too. Keep an eye on Sam since he is on meds. We would not be taking hot calls being down Sam anyways. No sense in getting a temp for just two days."_

* * *

 _ **Jules' Home – Guest Room**_

Rahmiel looked to Matt as Sam and Jules slept peacefully. She could see Matt was upset. His feathers were still all flattened, some were crushed and bent. He flew to Sam's rescue and took the impact of that ledge. Matt needed to renew and to forgive himself for his small lapse.

She put a hand on his shoulder "Learn from the mistake Matt. Don't beat yourself up over it."

"But he almost died" Matt said.

"But he didn't" Rahmiel replied. "We are all here to help. You should go renew now. I'll watch over Sam for a while. The pain pills will have him sleeping for hours."

Matt nodded. Rahmiel was right. He needed to learn from that mistake and never make that one again. He had made several mistakes over the past few years. He never made the same one twice. Rahmiel was also right that he had the support of all the guardian angels.

He said "I'll go in a minute. I just enjoy seeing him at peace. Jules really knows how to care for him. I cannot wait until they do not need to sneak around."

Rahmiel nodded "Me too. But that will be some time still."

Nanael and the new angel entered with Spike. Nanael asked "How are they doing?"

Rahmiel smiled "Jules was able to comfort him and help him to sleep. So she is doing better now too. You did good to have Spike suggest Jules' home."

Nanael nodded "Yeah it is really the only place they wanted to be. They need each other after something like that. That was quite a scare for all of them."

The new angel looked at Sam and Jules on the bed. Understanding dawned. Then he turned to Nanael "They are back together?"

Matt nodded "Yeah. They are. How do you feel about that?"

"That's awesome. I always thought they were a good couple" the new angel answered.

Matt patted his back and said "Spike cannot know right now. Sam and Jules are professional but the Guardian Angels keep whispering distractions to their charges to cover their minor slip ups."

The new angel turned to Nanael and said "That's why you suggested to Spike that Sam stay at Jules' place."

Nanael smiled and nodded "Yes, also why I didn't tell you not to suggest the adrenaline crash. That was a good explanation to Spike for Jules' nervousness while waiting to hear about Sam's condition. It was a small slip on her part. You gave Spike a plausible reason for it."

Patting the new angel's shoulder Nanael added "You learn fast. I'm sure that you will be taking over for me very soon."

Lou smiled he was so glad that he and Spike were more than just friends.

Not only were they blood brothers, literally because of the blood he gave Spike years ago, but now he was now going to get to be Spike's Guardian Angel.

Lou flapped his glorious ebony wings as his ethereal body glowed brightly and he soared up high as he flew in circles around Spike, his best friend, his brother, his charge.


	6. Becoming a Guardian Angel

**Becoming a Guardian Angel**

* * *

 _ **Setting:** Pre-series: Occurs when Matt dies._

 _ **Companion Piece:** Chapter 10 of **A Year and A Day** has Sam recalling Matt's death._

 _ **Guardian Angels: Hamon**_ _(Sam), **Louise**_ _(_ _Matt), **Yankee**_ _(_ _Blaze), **Ripsaw** (_ _Patch), **Gary**_ _(_ _Dave), **Patrick**_ _(W_ _illiam)_

* * *

 _ **Stronghold – Kandahar**_

"Oh shit, he never misses" Matt mouthed quietly as he stood and turned knowing his death was imminent and would be at the hand of his best friend, his brother. Matt's last living thought is that this was not only going to kill him it would kill his brother and that made him very sad.

Matt blinked. He felt no pain, none whatsoever. Everything burst into bright white light with a golden hue. Then he stood looking down at his earthly body. Where his chest had been was a gaping hole, there was nothing left. Matt then saw the strangest thing.

Tiny flecks of gold started floating up from all over the ground around his body. The golden flecks formed a stream. That stream was heading straight for him. Matt stood rooted in place as the golden flecks entered his chest. He felt a sense of warmth and peace as the flecks enter him.

Understanding dawned. It was his heart. All the shattered pieces of his heart floated up from the dusty dry desert floor and came back to him. As the last fragment of his heart settled into place, a sense of serene beauty engulfed him.

Matt turned away from his body then and saw a group of people waiting to greet him. His eyes landed on his beloved mother. Matt smiled. She was so beautiful.

"Matt my beloved gift from God" his mother's melodious voice said as she opened her arms wide to receive him.

Her arms enfolded him and Matt laid his head on her shoulder. He was much taller than her now. His arms went around his mother and held tightly. Matt was unsure how long he held onto her. It felt so very good.

Eventually he stepped back. He looked into her beautiful glowing face. There was not a single mark on her face. He lightly brushed his fingers around her eye. The one that had been blackened in the only picture of her he ever had. He whispered "So beautiful. Thank you for the music. I've missed you mom."

Louise smiled and caressed Matt's face "I've always been with you my love. Always. There has not been a day I have not been watching over you Matt."

Matt blinked "You called me Matt. Twice."

"Yes love, that is your name isn't it?" Louise responded softly.

Grinning Matt answered "Yes, yes it is."

Louise smiled "You picked a perfect name. I always knew you were a gift from God." Her smile faded a little as she said "It was my job to prepare you for your life. For your destiny. I'm sorry you have had so much pain in your life. But it was necessary."

Matt looked confused. Destiny, what destiny? Pain was necessary? What was she talking about? But before he could ask he was engulfed in a hug from a smaller man.

When he pulled back he was surprised "Ripsaw?"

Ripsaw grinned "Hey Matt. Welcome. I've been waiting to see you. Would have liked to wait a whole hell, heck of a lot longer though."

Matt nodded and the thing he picked up on was Ripsaw cleaned up his language big time. He saw a man and a woman standing behind Ripsaw patiently waiting. He looked to them wondering who they were.

Seeing Matt's gaze change to behind him Ripsaw said "I'd like to introduce you to my parents. Charlotte and Richard Preston."

Charlotte Preston came forward and hugged him. Then she said "What a beautiful idea you had to start that scholarship. The three of you are helping so many that need it." She placed her hand over his heart and said "You truly have a heart of gold."

A familiar voice boomed behind him and Matt swiftly turned. He was engulfed in another hug. It was Yankee. Matt was feeling overwhelmed when Yankee boomed out "Matt oh it has been too long but not long enough."

Matt nodded a bit bewildered.

Yankee said "I have someone I want you to meet. Someone very, very special."

Matt watched a sweet little girl approach him. She had long blonde hair and emerald green eyes. She was smiling at him. Matt knelt down on one knee so he was eye level to her. He asked "Who are you?"

She smiled sweetly then giggled "Who do you think Mattie?"

Matt's eyes opened wide "Sara? Sammy's Sara?"

Sara smiled and wrapped her arms around his neck. She whispered "Thank you for taking care of my Sammy."

Matt fell to his butt at that. Taking care of Sam. Who would take care of Sam now that he was dead? Tears welled in his eyes. He looked up at Yankee and Ripsaw. He choked out "Sam. Oh god Sam. He's the one that shot me. This is gonna kill him."

Louise knelt down next to Matt and brushed at the tears that were streaming down Matt's face "Hush my love. Hush. Hamon will watch over Sam."

Matt looked to his mom "Who is Hamon?"

"Sam's guardian angel. At least for now" Louise explained.

"What do you mean at least for now? Is Sam going to die?" Matt asked in a panicked voice.

No one answered Matt because a glorious angel appeared with huge wings. Matt stared at him. The angel's eyes were blue just like Sam's. He had shining blonde hair too.

Matt looked from this angel back to his mother and for the first time noticed her wings. Then he looked at Yankee and Ripsaw and noticed their wings. He turned to Sara but she did not have wings.

Sara put a hand on Matt's cheek and said "I'm not a guardian angel, just a regular angel. I visit Sammy sometimes in his dreams."

Yankee smiled and picked up Sara holding her close. He said softly "Little Sara I think you should go now. Go to your grandmothers. You do not like to see Sam when he hurts. This is going to hurt him a lot."

Sara asked with a sad voice "He's not going to die is he?"

A new angel appeared and he smiled at little Sara. She was so precious and they all watched out for her. Gary said "Not if I can get Dave to him quickly Sara." Then he said "Hamon, they are on their way."

Hamon said "Okay Gary. Thanks."

Gary then spread his wings and headed for Dave.

Ripsaw shifted and Matt saw he looked uncomfortable. It was like he knew what was about to happen and did not like it. But it was Ripsaw's 'Sam face' that concerned him the most. It was the expression Ripsaw donned when they dealt with Sam when he was hurt or came back from being with another unit.

Hamon reached out and tucked Sara's hair behind her ear. Softly he said "Time for you to go now poppet. Go to your grandmothers Rosemary and Gwyneth. I will protect him again. You will be able to play with him again soon."

"Promise?" Sara's said as her eyes welled up.

"I promise poppet" Hamon replied.

Yankee set her down and Sara looked at Matt once more "Take good care of him Mattie."

Matt was confused as he watched Sara fade. He looked at the others. What was going on?

Then he heard the most horribly painful cry he had ever heard. He whipped his head and saw Sam on his knees near the head of his earthly body. Sam's head was thrown back as the primal screaming did not stop.

Matt yelled "Nooooooooooooooooo Sammy No."

He looked with bewildered and pain filled eyes to his mother. He choked out "Why did he have to find me? Why?"

Louise wrapped her wings around Matt and held him as he wept. When the screaming ceased Matt pulled away.

Matt saw Hamon holding Sam. He saw Gary whispering in Dave Haverlik's ear as Dave performed CPR. He turned and saw both Yankee and Ripsaw flapping their wings furiously as they propelled Blaze and Patch forward toward Sam.

Then a sight that scared Matt more than knowing he was going to die scared him. He saw a faded very translucent Sam standing and looking down at his own earthly body.

Matt stormed over to the barely formed ethereal mist and yelled "IT IS NOT YOUR TIME! YOU CANNOT DIE NOW!"

Sam's head turned to Matt "I want to die. I killed you. I blew your heart into a million pieces. I deserve to die. I cannot live without you."

Matt yelled "NO!"

"But I want to be with you" Sam said sadly.

"You can't. Not now. You have to find the beauty of life. You have to live. For me. Please Sammy you have to live. Do this for me. Go back. Go back now before it is too late" Matt begged.

"It's so peaceful here though Mattie. There is no pain" Sam said softly.

Matt wrapped his arms around Sam's ethereal mist and something strange happened. After his arms enfolded Sam so did a pair of pristine wings. Matt held onto Sam and whispered "Go back. Go back. I'll always have my hand on your back. I'll always be there for you Sammy. You will never be alone. I promise."

One moment Sam was in his arms and then the next there was nothing.

Matt looked down at Sam on the ground. He saw Patch pound on his chest, once, twice, three times. Then Patch yelled "I have a pulse. We need air evac now."

He saw Blaze radio for evac and then drop to his knees next to his earthly body and Sam's body. He heard Blaze choke out "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Oh god I'm sorry. I gave the all clear. Matt I'm so sorry. Blondie. Oh god Blondie."

Matt's eyes teared up as all the guys knelt and said goodbye to his earthly body then held onto Sam as they waited for the air evac.

When the helicopter landed, Matt watched as Hammer and Patch picked up Sam and rushed to it with Sam in their arms. Hamon was right there with Sam holding him and whispering to him. Ripsaw floated right next to Patch as Patch ran carrying Sam. He then watched as Winds put his arms around Blaze and helped him to stand and urged him towards the helicopter. Their angels stayed close to them too.

While his brothers were tending to Sam, Matt watched the guardian angels whisper in the ears of Blaze, Winds and Patch. He wondered what they were doing. After the helicopter took off with all of them Matt's mother appeared beside him. He watched it fly away as tears flowed from his eyes.

Matt turned to his mother with confusion and tears in his eyes "What just happened?"

Louise folded her wings and smiled "You earned your wings Matt. You passed the first of many tests that you must go through to become Sam's guardian angel. I will guide and train you now in how you will do that. When you are ready you will take over from Hamon."

Disbelievingly Matt asked "What test did I pass?"

"Sam heard you. Your charge must be able to hear you. You spoke to him and he heard you. So you earned your wings" Louise explained.

"He heard me?" Matt questioned.

Louise smiled "In a way. He will not remember it as such. Sam may or may not actually remember that. Often times our charges do not. Many charges believe they are just making it up in their heads. They dismiss it as wishful thinking, memories and such."

Dawning hit Matt "Like when I used to hear you singing to me. When I heard music when there was no music around."

"Yes my love. Exactly like that" Louise said.

Matt glanced at his earthy body once more. Several unit soldiers were taking care of it. He saw Dave crying off to the side and he wished he could let him and all the guys know he was okay.

Putting her arm around Matt's waist she said "They will grieve for you my love. You had a positive impact on so many people and were so loved. In time their grief will lessen but they will never forget you my son. You made a difference in the world. You made it a better place."

He looked at his mom "You said you were watching over me. Were you my guardian angel?"

"Not at first but when you first met Sam was when I took over. It was my job to prepare you for this. To help you establish the deep connection with Sam that you will need to have to be his guardian angel" Louise answered.

Still confused Matt asked "Is that how guardian angels are selected. They need a personal connection?"

Louise shook her head "No not usually but when it exists it helps. Like with Ripsaw and Patch and with Yankee and Blaze. But no. What you and Sam have is rare. Very rare. In fact, there has not been a pair like the two of you for a millennium."

"Really? Why?" Matt asked.

A beautiful smile graced Louise's face "Because you are Sam's gift from God. Sam is destined to lead a life filled with many trials and much pain. He is a favored son of God just as you are. Sam's life will positively impact millions of people. But he will never know how much of an impact he will have."

"For every person he saves personally, for every person stops from committing heinous crimes against humanity there are a multitude of lives he touches. If he saves one little girl in an alleyway by killing the man that is holding her Sam will save so many he will never know about."

"How?" Matt asked.

Louise thought a moment and then tried to explain "Let's take that little girl. He saves her. As a result he saves the woman that was in charge of caring for her. Without Sam she would commit suicide. If she commits suicide it will impact all her friends and family."

"He also saves the family of the little girl because if she died her family would shatter to pieces and never be the same. Her grandmother would stop caring for others. As a result she would not be there to save the many patients in her charge. The families of all those patients would then be negatively impacted if she stopped working as a nurse. It goes on and on like that to touch hundreds of lives."

"Then if we look at the man he would kill to save the little girl. If he fails to do that then that man remains alive to wreak havoc in hundreds of more lives as he goes on a drug induced killing spree."

Louise stopped and said "What I'm saying is that things are so interconnected. If Sam blows up a cache of weapons before they can be used against thousands of innocent people then he protects hundreds of thousands lives."

Matt nodded starting to understand but asked "But why does Sam have to experience so much pain? You said he was a favored son of God. Me too. But if we are so favored why did we need to have so much pain. I mean mom, I watched father kill you in front of me. Sam watched little Sara die and his family essentially disowned him. Why?"

Patrick Ferguson spoke from behind Matt "Sam's family did not disown him. However, that is what Sam thinks. We cannot control everything. There is free will and good and evil in this world. We do our best to help fight evil and keep our charges safe and in the light. But we cannot make them do anything. They have free will."

Matt turned to the new voice "Who are you?"

"I am Patrick Ferguson, William Braddock's guardian angel" Patrick stated.

"General Braddock's?" Matt questioned.

Patrick nodded.

Louise then stated "Yes there is free will and there is good and evil. True evil in this world my love."

She took his hand and looked directly into Matt's eyes. "Sam is from a family of protectors. They have been protectors for a more than a millennium and are descendants of Hamon. You too are descended from Hamon but from a different branch of the family tree. Our branch are bringers of light. We have always protected the souls of the protectors."

Matt was reeling. This was too much. Bringers of Light? Protectors? He and Sam were descendants of that glorious guardian angel Hamon?

Louise sighed and smiled "You have much to learn my love. I will teach you and continue to prepare you to take over from Hamon soon. Sam will be entering a very dark period and you and Hamon are going to have to work very hard to save his soul."

Matt turned to Patrick and asked "So Sam's mom and dad do not hate him and blame him for Sara's death?"

Patrick shook his head sadly "No they do not hate him. They love him very deeply. They always have and always will. I have tried to whisper to William how to reach Sam but he is very stubborn and he asserts his free will very often. William has done so many things to try and help his son but every time he interacts directly with Sam it backfires on him. So he has needed to stay in the background and facilitate others to help his son."

Understanding dawned as his mother touched her hand to his forehead it glowed with a brilliant light as she shared many memories but from William's perspective instead of his or Sam's.

Matt blew out a breath and softly said "Poor Sammy. How can I help him?"

Louise smiled "You already started that on earth. You gave him the gift of music. You spoke to him often about the beauty of life. You gave him tools to cope and to find the beauty of life. With your continued support you will protect Sam's soul and keep him in the light."

She kissed his cheek "I love you son, you are truly a gift from God."

A warmth and peace settled around him and Matt smiled. He was going to be Sam's Guardian Angel. That made him very happy. He spread his wings for the first time and tried flapping them.

Matt laughed and said gleefully "I hope I learn to fly better than Sam learned to drive tanks."


	7. Good versus Evil or Ski Trip From Hell

**Good versus Evil or Ski Trip From Hell**

* * *

 _ **Setting:** During Series: Occurs sometime in season two during Sam's, Spike's, and Scott's **Ski Trip**._

 _ **Companion Piece:** Chapter 20 of **Ski Trip**._

 _ **Guardian Angels: Matt**_ _(Sam),_ _ **Nanael**_ _(_ _Spike)_ _ **, Rahmiel**_ _(_ _Jules),_ _ **Hasdiel**_ _(_ _Greg),_ _ **Karael**_ _(_ _Ed),_ _ **Barrattiel**_ _(_ _Wordy),_ _ **Sablo**_ _(_ _Lou),_ _ **Sabathiel**_ _(_ _Scott),_ _ **Gary**_ _(Vinson),_ _ **Dave**_ _(Sergeant Grey),_ _ **Phounebiel**_ _(Landry),_ _ **Temperance**_ _(Maisie),_ _ **Kabshiel**_ _(Minna),_ _ **Nuriel**_ _(Ron),_ _ **Tubiel**_ _(Vanessa)_

 _ **Fallen Angels**_ _:_ _**Mastema**_ _(Noah),_ _ **Shax**_ _(Jonas),_

 ** _Archangel: Samael - the angel of death, Satan_**

 _Check out chapter 10 of the_ _ **Beauty of Life Reference**_ _if you would like to see details on the meanings of the guardian angel and fallen angels names. I've updated and defined Guardian Angels for all the main Braddocks and all Sam's Unit buddies too._

* * *

 _ **Hospital – Surgery**_

Mastema grinned evilly and told Noah "Kill him. That cop is nothing. Your brother deserved to get treated first. Kill him now. Shoot him in the head. Then kill the others."

"Stay lying down. Stay down. Come on Sammy, listen to me. Stay down now. If you sit up he's gonna shoot you. He's pure evil. Please Sammy" Matt whispered furiously in Sam's ear as he kept one eye on the fallen angel Mastema and Noah Barton.

Nanael was whispering to Spike "Don't even think about it. No. Don't! Backup is out there. Keep it cool. You can do it. Talk to Noah again."

 _"How the hell did the Army get here?" Noah yelled at Spike._

 _The shout startled Sam. He was confused and things were blurry. He was so hot or was it cold? He wanted to sit up but something told him he should stay lying down now that the guy with the gun released Jules._

 _But at the shout, Sam first turned his head to look at the man with the guns then back to Spike. Sam mumbled out "The General sent help? When did you call my dad?"_

Matt shouted "SHUT THE FUCK UP SAM! Dammit don't draw attention to yourself."

 _Spike said "Quiet Sam."_

Shax, the fallen angel of Jonas, was looking at Jonas wanting him to wake and help his brother. The two of them could blow away all of them in this room and soldiers outside too. They had no qualms about killing.

He laughed when he heard the guardian angel of the blonde swear. Shax smirked "Now, now, watch your language. Guardian angels are not allowed to cuss."

Matt shook his head. He was back to swearing. Sam and intense situations brought bad habits back. He ignored Shax and focused on Sam. "Sammy quiet please. Spike is doing what he can. Help him out and just be quiet. I know you are very ill and confused but please hear me now."

Shax laughed again "Your charge isn't ill, he's a dead man. Noah always listens to Mastema. Prepare to fail guardian angel. Evil wins today."

Matt glared at Jonas's fallen angel. There was real evil in this world facilitated, guided and promoted by fallen angels. They were demons of Archangel Samael. They sought out weak, troubled or wounded souls and then blacken them beyond redemption.

It was one of the things Matt feared the most for Sam when he first took over.

The evil darkness was ever present and it took all he and Hamon before him had to keep Sam's wounded soul in the light. Matt now knew that when Sam was catatonic after his torture, that the darkness had almost taken over his own soul.

Matt had come so close to letting the darkness consume him. He recalled that his unit had told him had done things that he could not recall. His mother, his guardian angel at the time, worked so hard to keep him in the light.

As horrific as it was to hear all of what Sam went through in captivity, Sam talking to him had saved his soul. If Sam had stayed silent any longer the darkness and evil would have gotten a strong hold on him. Sam speaking gave his life purpose. He had to help Sam.

In helping Sam he had actually helped himself too. They both stayed in the light as the unit helped Sam recover. If Sam had not talked to him, then he would have never become Sam's guardian angel.

Matt feared the darkness less now. Though Sam was constantly tested and evil was always after him. He had learned that evil was always after protectors. Especially protectors descended from Hamon. Sam was their prime target.

Nanael took a quick glance at Matt, oh crap they he thought. The situation was moving from very bad to deadly. Evil was at work here today.

 _Noah roared "His father is a General?"_

Nanael urgently whispered to Spike "Talk, you can do it. Get Noah's focus off Sam."

 _Spike tried to talk Noah down again "We still want everyone unharmed including you and your brother. It is time to put your weapon down Noah. If you saw soldiers out there then they will be with Special Forces. They will likely have a sniper that can take you out. I don't want that to happen. You have not hurt anyone here. Let's keep it that way."_

 _Sam pushed himself up to a seated position one handed and looked around as he turned and let his feet dangle off the table. He was so confused right now. His eyes landed on the man with the gun as they landed on him. He saw hatred. Sam slowly registered the gun coming up to point at his head._

"OH SHIT!" Matt yelled as he wrapped his wings around Sam in anticipation of Sam being shot. His brilliant white wings flashed in the light as Matt prayed for Sam to survive. There was nothing more he could do but try to reduce Sam's pain as he crossed over.

Mastema yelled at Noah "Shoot him NOW! Kill him. Then kill them all. Do it."

 _There was report of gunfire and Sam watched as something flashed in front of him. The flash was followed by screaming from Jules. Sam blinked rapidly trying to clear his eyes enough to focus._

Nanael pushed Spike with all his ethereal energy as he wrapped Spike in his wings. He was so proud of Spike but also so very worried. He was able to move Spike just enough so it would not be a fatal shot.

As they fell to the ground Nanael whispered "So brave, so very brave. Hold on. Hold on Spike. Help is coming."

 _When his eyes cleared Sam looked down and he saw Spike on the ground. Spike's eyes were closed and he was not moving. Blood was blossoming on his shirt and puddling beneath him._

 _Sam was dazed and did not believe what he saw. "You killed him. You shot my friend" Sam said to the man._

 _Noah turned on the crying Minna and yelled "Shut the fuck up bitch or you are next."_

Matt was shocked as he unwrapped his wings from around Sam. Sam was not shot. Matt quickly realized why and he looked to Nanael first to check on Spike.

"How is he?" Matt asked with deep concern in his voice.

"Bad, really bad. He needs help quickly or he will bleed out" Nanael stated urgently.

 _Vanessa continued to try to calm Minna "Hush, please Minna."_

Kabshiel wrapped her wings around Minna and whispered "Hush now. Hush. I am here to protect you. Go with Vanessa."

Tubiel whispered frantically in Vanessa's ear "Move to the corner. Take Minna and move now to the back corner. Go, go. NOW!"

Matt whispered "Sammy time to be a hero. You're all dead if you can't stop him. The cavalry is just outside. All you have to do is slow Noah down. Knock the guns out of his hands. I'll help you the best I can. I know you are not doing so good but you don't want to die. Come on Sammy. You can rest soon. I promise."

Shax laughed evilly yet again as he saw Nanael on the ground with his charge bleeding out. He looked at Matt and taunted "What do you think your Sam can do? He's weak as a kitten now and out of his head."

Mastema laughed along with Shax and then said "Shoot the little screaming bitch. There is nothing the cop can do to stop you. You can kill him next."

 _Sam lunged at Noah trying to knock the guns out of Noah's hands. Sam shoved himself off the table with so much force they ended up on the ground in a tangle of arms and legs._

Matt grabbed ahold of Sam's shoulders and lifted with his wings as he added his ethereal energy to propel Sam at Noah. He watched as Sam and Noah went down in tangle of arms and legs.

He was nearly spent energy wise. Matt watched as Sam struggled with Noah trying to keep him from reaching the gun. He wanted to help but did not have the energy. Matt looked to Nanael for help. But Nanael had spent his energy getting Spike positioned so the shot was not fatal.

Matt turned to the guardian angels of Vanessa and Minna. They had their hands full. This was so not good.

He sensed a presence of someone he knew. Turned towards the door and he saw help arrive.

Matt shouted "Dave, help Sam."

Dave looked up from whispering encouragement to Sergeant Grey. He needed to get the lock open. Now. His eyes landed on Matt's and saw his panic. Dave appeared next to Blondie in an instant and laid his hands over Blondie's hands that were gripping Noah's shirt helping Blondie to hold on.

Mastema shrieked "Shax help me."

Shax and Mastema together pulled and pushed Noah. Dave hung onto Sam. It was two fallen angels against one guardian angel.

 _It was an all-out struggle as Sam tried to keep Noah from getting the gun. They wrestled on the ground, rolling this way and that. They rammed into the rolling tray that held the surgical instruments. It was knocked over and the instruments went flying and scattered on the floor around them._

 _Sam did not have the strength he needed to fight for long. But all he needed to do was hold on long enough for the soldiers to get in here._

 _Noah tried to get out of the cop's hold once again as he rolled and pounded on the hand that gripped the front of his shirt._

 _Sam hung on with everything he had as he grit is teeth to keep from yelling out as Noah pounded on his hand. With a small burst of energy Sam was able to pull Noah back from the gun that was just out of his reach._

Dave was using his ethereal energy rapidly. It was harder to hold onto Blondie's hands after supplying Blondie a boost of energy to pull Noah back from the gun. Dave needed help and now.

He bellowed "Gary I need your help. I cannot hang on to Blondie much longer."

 _Getting extremely pissed off that this cop was so strong in his current state Noah raged "Let go pig."_

* * *

 _ **Hospital – Hallway Outside the Surgery**_

Gary was right next to Vinson whispering "You got this. Your aim is true. He is evil."

Hearing Dave's call for help Gary yelled back to Dave "Almost in there. I need to be with Mark. His aim has to be true. I cannot let him hit Blondie. Almost there."

 _Vinson watched the legs and saw glimpse of the two wrestling on the floor. Still he could not take the shot for fear of hitting Sam as the two rolled back and forth. He saw the medical instruments shower down around them and scatter everywhere. Then Vinson glanced at the two women huddled in the back corner. Shit they needed to be in there now._

* * *

 _ **Hospital – Surgery**_

Mastema bellowed to Shax "Pull back and ram the cops shoulder into the gurney."

Matt was shouting to Sam "Hang on. Hang on. Just a few more moments. You can do it."

Shax and Mastema pulled Noah and they helped him slam Sam's shoulder into the gurney.

 _As Sam's shoulder rammed into the wheel of the gurney he lost his hold on Noah. He could not contain the grunt of pain, it hurt so badly._

 _"Shit" Sam yelled as Noah put some distance between them and Sam failed in his grab at Noah's shirt._

Matt scanned quickly for a weapon Sam could use. Urgently he called out "Sammy the scalpel. Grab the scalpel. Now while Noah is not looking."

While Shax helped Noah to his knees Mastema looked at Matt and said "Nice try but a scalpel has no chance against a gun. We win. You lose."

 _As Noah gained his knees he yelled "I may be dead but so are you cop." Then Noah raised his gun getting ready to fire._

 _Sam saw the gun raising towards him and he had no other options. It was kill or be killed._

Gary raced forward seeing Dave was spent. He gripped Blondie's left hand and added his energy to Blondie's as Blondie threw the scalpel.

 _Sam threw the scalpel hoping to buy just a little more time for the soldiers to get in here._

* * *

 _ **Hospital – Hallway Outside the Surgery**_

 _Vinson's eyes returned to where Sam and the target were still struggling. They rolled towards the back of the surgery and were blocked almost completely by the bed. "God dammit Sarge. Get the fucking thing opened. Sam won't last much longer."_

 _"Got it" called out Grey._

 _He stood and grabbed one of the handles as Vinson grabbed the other. Both had their weapons at the ready as they ripped open the doors._

* * *

 _ **Hospital – Surgery**_

 _The scalpel embedded in Noah's wrist just before he pulled the trigger. Noah screamed and his hand jerked up._

Gary urged Mark "Your aim true. You are a protector. You will not miss. Fire NOW!"

He knew that Vinson was a heck of a good shot, rivaled Blondie. However, Blondie was still the best Gary had ever seen. Blondie had saved him several times with his speed and accuracy. If only he could have run faster out of the building he would have made it like Blondie and Mason had.

But that was okay. Gary enjoyed being a Guardian Angel now. Getting to watch over men he cared about a great deal. He also liked fighting evil in various forms. His charge did it in the earthly form, he did it by protecting those that fought evil as best he could.

 _At the same time as Noah was aiming at Sam and Sam threw the scalpel, Vinson had a clear shot at Noah as his head came above the bed. Vinson's finger squeezed the trigger a fraction of a second after Noah pulled his._

 _Two bullets sped out of guns. Neither hit their intended target._

 _The nitrous oxide tank exploded._

Nanael covered Spike. Matt covered Sam. Dave flew to Grey and Gary flew to Vinson. Each wrapped their charges in their wings as they were blown out of the surgery. Tubiel covered Vanessa and Kabshiel covered Minna in the corner of the room.

Mastema and Shax faded. Their work here was done. Noah and Jonas were both dead and could not wreak more evil in this world. It was time to find another weak, wounded or troubled soul to turn to evil.

Nanael was the first to rise. He called out beseechingly "Lord please save my charge. Spike is a brave soul that was willing to sacrifice himself to save another."

Matt looked down at Sam. He would be okay if they could get his fever down. Then he looked at Spike. His heart broke. Darkness might get a foothold with Sam if Spike died. Sam would feel intense guilt. He could not let that happen.

He recalled all of Patch's training. Spike was bleeding out too quickly. They needed to staunch the flow of blood with pressure. But how? Everyone that could do that was unconscious.

Kabshiel and Tubiel floated over. Their charges were hurt but safe for the moment.

Kabshiel said "Those two are so strong. What can we do to help?"

Tubiel began tugging on Sam "We need to get Sam on top of Spike to slow the bleeding. Help me."

As Tubiel, Kabshiel, Matt and Nanael were tugging on Sam they realized they did not have enough ethereal energy to move him.

Matt was calling to Dave and Gary for help when he saw Scott's guardian angel Sabathiel appear.

Sabathiel immediately saw what was going on and tried to help lift Sam. They still did not have enough combined ethereal energy to lift Sam's muscular body. Sabathiel said "Scott is safe. We need more help." He faded quickly.

* * *

 _ **Hospital – Upstairs**_

Sabathiel appeared and called out "We need help in the surgery."

Immediately Landry's guardian angel Phounebiel asked "What kind of help?"

"We need to move Sam on top of Spike to stop his bleeding" Sabathiel stated urgently.

Temperance whispered to Maisie "All will be okay soon Maisie my girl. I'm going to help. Be back in a moment."

Nuriel, Ron's guardian angel, said to Sabathiel "I'll be there in a moment. Going to get more help from Jeremy's, Jasmine's and Vera's angels."

Sabathiel, Temperance and Phounebiel all faded heading towards the surgery.

* * *

 _ **Outside Craig Hospital**_

 _Jules watched as the medical team disembarked and began getting their gear ready in order to render aid as soon as they were given the all clear to enter the building. She turned to Lou and adjusted her hold on her MP5 as she said "I hope the unit resolved it already. I'm worried about Sam, Spike and Scott."_

Rahmiel turned to Karael and said "We have to get in there now. I have a feeling we are needed."

Karael, Hasdiel, Barrattiel and Sablo all left their charges at Rahmiel's words. They had learned to listen to her feelings. Especially where Sam and Spike were concerned.

* * *

 _ **Hospital – Surgery**_

Soon the surgery was filled with guardian angels. With relief Nanael and Matt saw Rahmiel, Karael, Hasdiel, Barrattiel and Sablo. That meant Team One was here. Thank God. Sam and Spike would need them.

Sabathiel, Temperance and Phounebiel joined forces with Matt, Nanael, Tubiel, Kabshiel and the rest of Team One angels. They were making progress but Sam was so heavy. They needed more help.

Nuriel popped in with eight more guardian angels. Three belonged to Jeremy, Vera and Jasmine. Two belonged to Hinder and Welch. The remaining three were Ethan's and his parent's angels.

Dave called out to the guardian angels of Forbes, Thorson and Ramos. Those three immediately came forward to assist.

With the combined ethereal energy of twenty four guardian angels they were able to lift the dead weight of Sam off the ground and place him over Spike. Tubiel directed them how to move Sam so he was positioned just right to provide pressure right where it was needed.

The ethereal energy of each of them was almost completely depleted. Moving an unconscious man several feet was extremely taxing. It was not something one angel could do on their own. Sure raising an arm already in motion or nudging a hand or a foot was within each angel's ability. But they required team work to move an entire man.

Nanael looked at each of them and said "Thank you. Thank you so very much."

All except Matt, simply nodded and returned to their charges. They could not leave them long.

Noah and Jonas looked on in wonder. What was happening? Both looked at their bodies. It was clear they were dead. What did they just see happen?

Jonas asked "Where are we?"

Matt saw Noah and Jonas but ignored them as he put his arm around Nanael and said "You did good today. We vanquished evil."

Nanael grinned and said "We win again."

The two of them then looked shocked when a faded wispy form of Spike appeared.

Nanael quickly moved forward "Spike it is not your time yet. Go back. Go back now. I don't want you to see what is coming. Go now."

Spike looked at a winged being. He was confused. Then he saw another winged being that looked a lot like Sam's best friend Matt. What the heck was happening?

"Where am I?" Spike asked confused.

Matt said "Where you should not be. Listen to Nanael and go back."

Spike blinked. The winged being spoke to him. Whoa!

Nanael touched Spike's face gently and smiled "You heard him. Wow. Your connection to Sam must be growing stronger. Please go back now Spike. You do not want to see what is coming."

Spike nodded still confused but he faded completely.

Nanael let out a deep sigh. That was close. He did not want Spike to experience what was coming. It was something he would never need experience. Spike was solidly in the light. He did not need to see the dark side.

Jonas and Noah could hear everything that was said.

Noah asked with an edge to his voice "Why did you want him to go?"

Matt turned to Noah and Jonas and answered "Because it is your judgement day."

Ominous cries of millions of souls in pain began to fill the air and the area around Jonas and Noah became increasingly hot. A darkness descended over them as the shadow of an enormous, terrifying angel slowly appeared.

The archangel was as dark as a night with no stars or moon. His twelve huge wings were made of fire and burned brightly. His eyes glowed red in his hawkish face and his horns were long, curled and spiked on the ends.

Fear entered both sets of eyes as Jonas cried out "Noah?"

The dark archangel reached out a hand and pointed to Jonas and Noah with a long finger tipped with sharp claws. Noah and Jonas clung to one another in desperation as fear engulfed them both.

His voice alone was chilling as the dark archangel declared "I am Archangel Samael, Prince of the demons, the venom of God, the angel of death. Many know me as Satan. You have served me well in this life and now your souls belong to me for eternity."

Noah and Jonas shrieked in terror as something grabbed onto their ankles and began to pull them down into the darkness. Heat licked at them and their shrieks of terror quickly turned into screams of ungodly pain as Noah and Jonas were dragged down into bowels of hell.

Samael turned and stared at Samuel, descendant of Hamon. He wanted his soul for his collection because he could use Samuel's power and strength to wreak havoc and spread evil in proportions not seen in a millennia. Samael just had to get a foothold and then he could turn Samuel to the darkness.

Turning an intimidating glare on Matt, Samael prophesied "One day his soul will be mine."

Defiantly Matt stood straight and proud "You can try but you will not win. Sam's soul is protected by me. He will always chose the light and the beauty of life."

Samael laughed evilly as he said "We will see. We will see." Then he faded. The screams of the damned faded along with him.

Matt took a deep breath once Samael was gone and the screams ceased. He said softly "I will never get used to those screams."

Nanael nodded "Not something one can get used to."

They both turned as Ed, Wordy and Lou entered the surgery. Matt and Nanael watched as Barrattiel whispered assurances to Wordy when Wordy found Sam and Spike. They saw Wordy's hesitation to reach out and check for pulses.

Matt said "Wordy and Lou are gonna need a lot of assistance."

Nanael added "So are Jules, Ed and Greg."

Matt nodded "Good thing we work well as a team. We can discuss how to help each one through this trial."

 _Wordy urgently called out "I need medics in here NOW! Sam and Spike are alive but Spike's pulse is very weak and one or both of them is losing a lot of blood. Sam is on top of Spike so I cannot tell who is bleeding."_

Barrattiel looked up at Matt and Nanael and sighed "This is _NOT_ the ski trip that any of us expected Sam and Spike to have."

Matt laughed, he couldn't help it. Ah hell, heck, this was Sam. What other type of ski trip could he have? Evil was constantly trying to get ahold of his soul.

He knew that Samael would never get Samuel's soul if he and Team One Guardian Angel's had anything to say about it.

.

* * *

 _ **AN:**_ _Hope you liked this one. Please drop me a review and me know what you thought._


	8. Center Ice

**Center Ice**

* * *

 _ **Setting:**_ _During Series: Occurs in season two, episode Behind the Blue Line._

 _ **Companion Piece:**_ _Fragments of a Beautiful Life: 4 - Open Ears and Kind Words Soothe the Pain_

 _ **Guardian Angels: Matt**_ _(Sam),_ _ **Nanael**_ _(_ _Spike)_ _ **, Rahmiel**_ _(_ _Jules),_ _ **Hasdiel**_ _(_ _Greg),_ _ **Karael**_ _(_ _Ed),_ _ **Barrattiel**_ _(_ _Wordy),_ _ **Duma**_ _(Leah),_ _ **Ishim**_ _(Darren)_

 ** _Fallen Angel: Bernael_** _(using Darren)_

* * *

 _ **Godwin Coliseum – Concessions Area By Escalators**_

Matt's eyes teared up. Sammy called him Ben. Sam used to do that to make him smile. Matt remembered when he shared with Sam he wished he had chosen Benjamin Matthew instead of Matthew Benjamin because the name Ben made him happy.

It was so painful to hear Sam tell Darren how he killed him. Not for himself but for Sam. Matt also recalled how close Sam came to dying that day too. His heart had stopped and Dave did CPR until Patch pounded on Sam's chest and restarted his heart.

For Matt that day was both tragic and glorious. Tragic because of the pain Sam and the rest of the guys felt at his death. Glorious because he was wrapped in God's loving embrace and he saw his beautiful beloved mother again. And because he found out that he would become Sam's guardian angel.

He learned that all the pain and strife in his life was pre-destined so that he would be able to connect and bond with Sam. And that their shared painful childhoods would be the basis of a bond of brotherhood which could not be broken by the evil of the world. His mother and Hamon had taught him well and he knew that Sam would not have an easy life. Evil was always looking for a way into Sam's soul.

Matt wiped his tears and smiled when he heard Sam.

" _I … I thought I was gonna go crazy, but I got through it" Sam managed to get out as the memory assaulted him. He could not believe he was doing this. But he knew Darren. This was one guy he could connect with._

 _Darren responded "You have a place in your mind you go to when you can't take it anymore. When you think you're gonna die." Darren sighed then continued "And you're thinking you'd rather be dead than where you are."_

" _Yeah" Sam answered. Not that he would ever tell the team but Matt's grave was his place. But he didn't add that._

 _Darren shared "Now, for us … me and Howie … this was it. We knew if we could just make it back, you know. We'd close our eyes, and … we'd imagine ourselves back here at center ice. Now they're gone. Howie's gone. They're not gonna let me back in there. And I got nothing here. I got nothing to see me through."_

 _Sam saw his in. He could do this. He could talk Darren down._

 _His voice a gravelly whisper Sam shared "I thought it was over for me too, Darren. I know, okay. I know. But I found a different place to go, a different person to be. That's why I'm here. So let me help you."_

 _Greg nodded liking what he was hearing and thinking that Sam was doing so well. He was making the connection. He could see resolution coming._

Darren's guardian angel, Ishim, one of the angels of fire and ice, smiled briefly. His charge was in so much pain. He could not talk him out of coming to the Godwin. But now there was hope that his wounded soul might just make it fully back into the light. Darren was a good man but the darkness had latched onto his wounded soul and was working to claim his soul for Samael.

Ishim smiled because Darren was connecting with Sam Braddock. They had both suffered horrible loses. Sam was getting through to Darren.

 _Darren asked "What was your first name again, Braddock?"_

" _It's Sam" Sam answered._

 _Crying Darren said "I'm tired Sam."_

 _Sam responded "Then let's get some rest. Let's do this together."_

* * *

 _ **Godwin Coliseum – Darren's Location**_

Ishim thought this is good. Sam said all the right things. There was hope for Darren now.

Bernael, a fallen angel of darkness and evil, was enjoying this. He had been whispering to Darren in his cloaked form. Samael would be proud of him. Not only would he claim Darren's soul but quite possibly Samuel's too.

There was a bounty on Samuel's soul. Every fallen angel and demon knew it. Samael would reward whoever was able to crack into Samuel's soul and let darkness seep in. His previous vessels, Major Plouffe and Murphy almost earned him a reward. But those damned unit buddies of his, especially Matt and Sam's guardian angel Hamon kept foiling his plans. Not to mention all the other guardian angels that seemed to come out of the woodwork to help Samuel.

Bernael had studied and watched Samuel for years. Ever since he learned of the bounty on Samuel's soul. Samuel was nine then. He thought for sure he could turn a child's soul dark.

But that turned out to be harder than he thought. His first major attack was when he had arranged for Sara's death. Taking away Samuel's light and twisting Samuel's mind, Bernael had almost won. But his damned parents and their damned guardian angels, especially his mother's guardian angel, Shamsiel, was able to keep Samuel just out of his reach.

He had almost won again when he guided and prompted Dupont's actions and behaviors. Dupont was more than willing and his soul was blacker than black. But Hamon and the damned guardian angels of Private Brock and Master Corporal Duffy foiled him again.

But this time they wouldn't be able to do a damned thing to stop him. This scenario was so perfect. Bernael could see it had all the elements needed to rip into Samuel's soul. It would feed into Samuel's fear of failure and unlock painful memories.

Bernael whispered to Darren "Agree. You are almost there. You will be with your buddies soon."

Stopping to laugh, but not allowing Darren to hear him, Bernael thought not really. Darren's buddies were all in the light. They went to heaven. If he got Darren to do this then Darren would be claimed by Samael and his soul dragged to hell, never to see his buddies again.

Bernael resumed his whispering "Agree. Say Okay. That's it."

 _Coming to a decision Darren responded "Okay."_

 _Greg quietly said "Nicely done Sam. Alright let's bring it home."_

 _Sam instructed Darren "Now, Darren I need you to put down your gun."_

" _Okay I will" Darren answered._

" _And I need you to come down to the bottom of the escalator's concession area" Sam continued._

Still cloaked and invisible to all, Bernael whispered, "Say No. Tell him to meet you on center ice. You always felt at home on center ice. Tell him it has to be him. Sam is the one that needs to shoot you. He's a soldier; he will understand that you need to do this. That you need to be with your buddies. It has to be him."

" _No" Darren stated._

" _Darren …" Sam started to say._

"Remember center ice and that it has to be Sam. You want only Sam to shoot you. He is a good soldier like you. He will understand it is a mercy killing. He has experience with that and has killed hundreds of men so he won't be hurt by this" Bernael urgently guided Darren's confused thoughts.

Bernael preferred facilitating pure evil like, Plouffe, Murphy and Dupont. They needed less encouragement. They didn't need to be cajoled and misdirected either. Pure evil souls would do as he asked with zeal. Evil souls hungered for the pain they could cause others.

Whereas Darren's soul was weak and wounded and darkness only had a small grasp on it right now. Much like both Donner's souls and several others he had tried to use in the past. But each had been useful in their respective times. With each attempt to claim Samuel's soul Bernael learned more about what made Samuel tick. He was certain this time he would win.

 _Darren overrode Sam and stated "Center ice … and it has to be you."_

 _Ed interjected "Too exposed."_

 _Sam shook his head frustrated "Darren I can't."_

 _Putting on his cap Darren stated firmly "Center ice."_

 _Sam conceded even though Ed thought it was too exposed "I'll be there."_

"Good. Now let's get going. You have the security guard to get ready. This will work. You will be with your buddies very soon now" Bernael said as he rubbed his hand together in anticipation.

* * *

 _ **Godwin Coliseum – Concessions Area By Escalators**_

Matt and Karael shared a look. The team missed it. Darren was not giving up. He wanted Sam to kill him. Darren wanted suicide by cop.

Karael whispered frantically to Ed "Cover Sam. Get Sam's rifle. He cannot go out on center ice with no cover."

Hasdiel was whispering into Greg's ear "Basic precautions. Get down there."

Nanael and Barrattiel were whispering to Spike and Wordy to be on their toes to be aware. That they needed to cover Sam.

Matt whispered frantically to Sam "Sammy, suicide by cop. Please hear me. You connected but Darren is too far gone. He wants you to kill him. Please Sammy hear me."

His frustration grew to immense proportions as Sam did not hear a single word. He was too wrapped up in trying to save Darren. Sammy did not hear the switch in Darren's voice. Matt wished that Sam was better at negotiations.

As Hasdiel joined them when Greg brought the rifle Matt looked too Hasdiel "Sammy is not listening to me. This is gonna end bad. Sammy is going to be hurt one way or another."

Hasdiel's face was one of sympathy "Greg did not hear the switch either. None of them did."

Karael started to follow Ed as Ed and Leah headed off. He yelled "Ed heard. Ed is concerned. He will cover Sam. Sam will not die today."

Matt softly said "That's not what I'm worried about."

Rahmiel came forward to Matt. Jules was safe in the truck for the moment so she came to see if she could help. "Matt what are you worried about? Karael and Ed have Sam covered."

As they moved down the entrance to center ice Matt said "It's Sam's emotional well-being I'm worried about. This is gonna impact him."

* * *

 _ **Godwin Coliseum – Center Ice**_

Matt tried to get Sam to hear him. It was no good. Sam was too tightly wrapped into the situation. He was seeing it as an opportunity to save a fellow soldier.

Nanael did not get through to Spike. Spike's mind was still reeling from the pain Sam shared in trying to connect. They all knew about Matt. But hearing Sam tell Darren the most painful thing from his past to connect had impacted Spike.

As a result Spike did not hear Nanael shout a warning and did not see Darren when he got the drop on him. The gun was to Spike's head in a flash.

Ishim looked on with saddened eyes. He had tried, tried so very hard. But his charge was too far gone. He was in too much pain. Darren could not hear him and understand that he could get help. That Howie, Jordan and Pete did not want him to die.

Bernael thought that the rifle shot was perfect. Darren fell dead. Bernael grinned evilly as he saw the blood rush out of Darren's body and pool around his head and shoulders on the floor of the coliseum. It would not be long now and he could call Samael to come and claim Darren's soul.

Sam's painful growl of _"Why did you do that? Why did you do that?"_ jerked Matt's heart.

As Sam ranted and became angry with the team and with Ed especially Matt tried to get Sam to hear him. But he would not. Could not.

 _Sam walked toward Darren and kicked the gun away angrily "Could've stuck it out."_

 _He knelt down and leaned on Darren getting covered in Darren's blood. Sam's voice was soft and full of pain "Huh? Weren't gonna shoot, were you?"_

 _Sitting up and back on his heels Sam wiped the blood from his hands and arms on his shirt as his face contorted in pain and his eyes were prickling with unshed tears._

 _Sam looked up at Ed a moment. His eyes were on the verge of tears and his voice was raw pain "He wasn't gonna shoot." Sam whipped his head to Greg and yelled angrily "He wasn't gonna shoot!" as he broke down._

Darren looked down at his body. He saw Sam crying and covered in his blood as he talked to him. What had he done?

Oh God how could he have chosen to do this? He felt intense pain for the pain he was causing Sam. As soldier Darren thought Sam would understand. But he did not. Sam was angry and yelling at his team.

"I'm sorry. Oh my God. Sam, I'm so sorry. I could see no other way. I didn't think what this would do to you. What it would do to others. Please forgive me" Darren pleaded watching Sam cry over his body.

A familiar voice said "Darren."

Darren turned and saw his three musketeers. Howie had his arms wide open but tears in his eyes "You didn't have to die. It was not your fault we died; you did not plant the IED. I'm sorry you hurt so badly that you saw no other way."

Howie came forward and embraced Darren as Darren dissolve into tears and cried out for the pain he caused. Not only did he hurt the members of this team that had tried to save him. His death would hurt his father and coach too. What had he done?

Jordan and Pete came forward then and wrapped their arms around Darren and Howie. This was not how they wanted Darren to die. He was their brother and wished he could have worked through the pain and lived a long happy life. But even though his choice was wrong they were here because they could never abandon their brother.

Ishim looked on at the four of them huddled together. Many times he had seen that when the four of them were in Kandahar and one needed the other. It had been so difficult for Darren to be left behind. He suffered intense survivor's guilt.

He smiled when he saw the ray of bright light coming. Ishim was glad that Darren's unprompted apology to Sam had redeemed Darren's soul.

Ishim turned to Matt and said "I'm sorry for the pain Darren caused your charge. Darren is a good soul but as a man he was pushed beyond his ability to cope."

Matt nodded "I understand. His soul was wounded. I'm glad he returned to the light before it was too late for his soul."

Ishim smiled "Well we are in the Godwin coliseum."

Matt looked at Ishim confused "So?"

"Don't you get it Godwin. As in God Win" Ishim explained.

Matt grinned slightly "Well there is that. Even if we add an extra o it would be Good Win."

Ishim nodded and watched as Darren and his musketeers were surrounded by the light and taken to heaven. He smiled as he thought that Darren's soul was safe and Darren would be playing hockey in heaven soon. Ishim faded and went to check on his other charges.

Bernael was beyond pissed that Darren apologized and remained in the light. Samael would be displeased with him. He remained hidden from view. Bernael decided he would have to go directly to Samuel and whisper things to feed his fears and show him what a pitiful failure he was. How everyone he loved died because of him and that he was worthless and a danger to everyone around him.

It might take more time but this could still work. Samael would forgive his failure to get Darren's soul if he got Samuel's. Bernael remained cloaked and watched with ill-concealed glee at seeing Samuel's pain, anger at his team and the blood covering his arms. This could still work. Darren was dead and Samuel would feel responsible. He laughed evilly but silently.

Turning from where Ishim had been, Matt looked at Sam. Matt saw the rage building in Sam. He could see all the work he and Hamon had done to keep Sam in the light and moving forward was unraveling.

Matt quickly spoke to the Team One guardian angels "Help me. Help the others say things that will help Sam. He is coming apart inside. I'm afraid he will leave the team and then the darkness will get a foothold. We cannot let that happen."

The guardian angels began whispering thoughts and ideas to their charges. They saw that every single one of their charges was reeling from the chain of events. Each felt they had failed at least once along the line. Their charges all knew that Sam was angry as he stormed off not heeding his Sarge's call to come back.

* * *

 _ **SRU HQ – Briefing Room**_

The angels were trying. Karael was doing exceedingly well. Ed was listening to him. Ed was walking softly here.

Hasdiel had Greg behaving with authority at first. It was needed. Sam needed to understand. Matt was not shocked by Sam's anger but he was a little shocked at the way Greg spoke to Winnie. He never spoke like that to her. He could see it disconcerted Winnie too.

Greg ordering Sam to the briefing room and shoving him that way was the tough love that Blaze would have shown as CO. Sam responded that to that. It was ingrained in him to follow superior officers orders.

Nanael and Barrattiel had their hands full with Spike and Wordy. Those two were at each other's throats as they entered SRU HQ. Matt thought Spike and Wordy might actually come to blows.

Jules was the calm one; maybe because she had not been on center ice when it went down. Maybe it was just her professional demeanor asserting itself very strongly to cover her feelings for Sam. Rahmiel was still whispering in Jules ear although Matt could not hear what she was saying. Whatever it was he was glad there was at least one calm team member.

Matt watched as Jules gave Sam a towel. So that was it. Rahmiel had urged Jules to give Sam a towel so he could remove Darren's blood from his arms and hands. Why the team did not ensure Sam was cleaned off and his burn checked out by EMS at the scene Matt could not venture to guess. Actually he knew the answer. Everyone was emotionally charged and not thinking straight.

Rahmiel floated to Matt seeing his distress in the way his ethereal energy flickered and his wings drooped. Softly she said "Once they settle down they will be there for Sam. We will not allow the dark to get a foothold on Sam."

Matt turned to Rahmiel "Sam is overstressed like a toddler who missed his nap. He needs a moment to regain his bearings. He is going to use deflection. Without our help the team will never know that he is doing it. Sam is too damned, darned good at it."

Rahmiel looked at Jules and sighed "Is this not something she can help with is it?"

"Not directly. Sam's gotta work this one out in his head. I hope they can get him to see Darren's motives. But I also fear that when Sam does get it that it will unleash things the team has no clue about" Matt lamented.

"Like what?" Rahmiel asked wanting to help if she could.

Matt sadly looked at Sam "Memories he has deeply buried and not dealt with."

Then he looked at Rahmiel "The team is going to think this is about me and Sam. When Sam shot me. I'm not too worried about that. No this will hit him deeper. This is not the first time someone wanted Sam to kill them. It is memories of that time and the sense of failure and guilt Sam always feels when he cannot save someone that I fear most right now."

His wings dropped further and a few feather floated to the ground as Matt sighed "Sam cannot hear me right now. His mind is too wired. There is too much stimulation, too many voices, energy, memories and emotion for Sam to think clearly or hear me. I'm going to have to wait for a quiet moment."

Laying a hand on Matt's shoulder Rahmiel gently said "He will hear you. You two have a stronger connection than I've ever seen between guardian angel and charge."

Matt nodded and watched as the team settled in, not that anyone was really settled, but enough to start debrief. He saw that Barrattiel and Nanael finally calmed Wordy and Spike. Hasdiel was able to whisper to Greg and Greg resumed his normal calming demeanor. That alone had a great effect on those in the room; even Sam.

By the time Ed and Karael returned from SIU everyone was speaking in normal voices. Matt was glad to see Ed's demeanor was calm.

Karael said to Matt "Thank goodness Ed is listening. The last thing Sam needs right now is for Ed to go all raging on him. I can see that Ed is upset over having to shoot Darren. It was not an easy thing to do. But Darren would have shot Sam regardless of what Sam thinks. He was at too much risk and Ed could not allow Sam to be shot."

Matt nodded "You're speaking to the choir here. We all know Darren's intentions. Darren was too far gone in his pain. Just like Sam was too tightly wrapped up in trying to save Darren that he had blinders on and lost perspective. Sam put himself at risk, unacceptable risk. Ed did the right thing."

Barrattiel and Nanael joined them and Matt asked "How are Spike and Wordy?"

Nanael sighed "Spike is back to reason. Hearing about you though, threw Spike for a loop. It brought back painful memories of Lou. Then when Darren got the drop on him, all Spike could think was that he was going to be the cause of Sam's death and that sent him spiraling out of control for a bit."

Barrattiel grimaced "Wordy is not quite himself yet. It was not like him to lash out like that at Spike. He's beating himself up over that. Also for making the assumption the security guard had gone home. He's thinking that if they had known that the security guard was in there that Darren would not have gotten the drop on Spike and forced Ed to shoot Darren. And if Ed had not had to do that that Sam would not be so upset. Wordy hates to see Sam upset."

Matt patted Barrattiel's shoulder "Wordy is a good man. Sam thinks of him as another father. Sam has three now; his own father, Blaze and Wordy. It is nice to see, especially because Sam needs the extra care and guidance each one of them offer him. Even though Sam will never admit that to anyone."

"How can Wordy help him now?" Barrattiel asked sincerely.

Matt sighed "I'm not really sure yet. Sam's mind is too mixed up right now for me to read him properly. Maybe once he calms I can say."

The guardian angels all nodded.

Duma, Leah's guardian angel, normally hung back from the rest and remained silent unless she was needed. But she interrupted them "Matt you need to pay attention."

They all turned back to the team.

 _Greg walked to Sam and said "Sam, his connection was real, man. But he knew what he wanted."_

 _Ed quietly added "And there's nothing you could've done, Sam, to change that."_

 _Realization hit Sam he read the transcript. His face morphed into a pained frown "It has to be you."_

 _Sam turned to face the windows "He wanted me to kill him."_

 _Greg's concerned voice said "Come on Sam."_

 _Pain imbuing his voice Sam responded "Ah, that's alright. I get it."_

 _Sam turned back to the team. His eyes red and his voice not quite steady and self-accusatory Sam shared "Look … when I left the field and joined the SRU, I didn't want to be a point-and-shoot guy." Sam paused then added "I didn't want to take people out from a mile away."_

 _He turned to the Boss and his voice hitched "I wanted to … save people. You know, up close."_

 _Sam's wide open and sad eyes held Greg's eyes._

 _Greg's eyes closed briefly feeling the pain that was shown in Sam's eyes. He wished he could take that pain away. He wished he had heard Darren's intention before it was too late._

 _He understood that with Sam's limited experience that Sam might not have heard it. But Greg knew he sure the hell should have. He wrote the damned manuals, he should have seen this. The questions now that Greg was struggling with were how could he help Sam see it was not his fault and how could he ease Sam's pain?_

 _Sam turned away and the well of deep emotional turmoil spewed forth as he told the team "And the one guy I should have been able to reach … I mean, the one guy … I couldn't."_

 _He was shutting down emotionally as it all became too much and Sam stated "I wasn't objective. I put my team at risk. I don't belong here."_

 _Sam turned and strode out of the briefing room. He had to get out of here. It was too much. Too much. He had failed again. Darren wanted him to kill him. Memories of Shy started to seep out of the tight box he had put them in. It was too similar. Shy wanted him to kill him too. It was too much._

Matt flew after Sam. Oh no, Matt thought as he heard Sam's thoughts clearly. Not Shy. Not Shy. It was what he feared.

That memory was too raw and Sam never dealt with it. Sam had simply shoved it down and locked it away. Sam had never once talked to the unit about Shy's death. None of them were there but they knew what happened because Dragon was with Sam when it happened.

But Sam never said a word. He never used Beauty to process it. It was like he locked it away and would never allow the memory to see the light of day. Sam pretended like it never happened. Shy's death could destroy Sam if Matt did not handle this carefully.

* * *

 _ **SRU HQ – Rooftop**_

Matt followed Sam to the rooftop. He was glad Sam decided to head up here first. Sam found solace up here. This was place Sam felt secure and he came here to think. It was a good sign. Or at least Matt hoped it was.

Karael appeared and said "The rest of the team is showering. How is Sam? What he said really affected the team. Nanael has his hands full again. Spike is blaming himself."

"He is starting to process. When he calms enough I will try to figure out what to do. How to help him" Matt said as he focused on Sam.

Nodding Karael said "Okay. I'll leave you be then. Call out if you need our help." Karael then looked over the roof to the ground below and back at Sam with a worried expression.

Matt snorted "He's not suicidal Karael. Besides if he was going to do that, he would not jump off the building. Sam would go home, get his pearl handled colt and go to my grave."

Karael stared at Matt. Suicide was exactly what he was thinking. "How did you know what I was thinking? And more importantly how do you know that Sam would do it that way?"

Sighing Matt said "Practice."

The one word answer was so Sam-esque. Karael decided to drop it. He gave a curt nod and faded to head back to Ed.

Floating over to Sam, Matt whispered "Hey Sammy. I know that was really hard. You tried so hard to save Darren. He was just in too much pain and didn't think he could find the beauty of life again. He was not as strong as you buddy."

"Feel the breeze. It is cool and relaxing. You always like to be up high and feel the breeze. You are going to get through this trial brother. It's gonna hurt badly for a while but you are going to get through it" Matt continued.

Bernael whispered evilly "Remember Shy. That was fun wasn't it? You never miss. You are a natural born killer. That's why you will always be a danger to those you care about. Just like Matt and Shy. Every person who cares about you dies horribly. Which one of the team will be next? You already failed Jules. Look where that got you. She doesn't want you because you are a failure and a killer."

 _Sam raked his hand through his hair. Why? Why did it have to be him? Did he have a sign on him that said 'pick me to kill you, I never miss'?_

 _He squatted down and sat next to the air handler. It was silent right now but he wished for the white noise of it to drown out his thoughts, memories and feelings. He did not want to feel this or remember Shy. Sam was trying to lock it away again. But it was hard because so many things were in his head._

 _As he became overwhelmed Sam shouted "I put my team at risk. Spike was held at gun point because I did not recognize the suicide intent. I suck at negotiations. The one guy I should have been able to reach I couldn't. It has to be you. Why? Why me? Why did Darren want me to kill him?"_

 _Sam banged the back of his head against the air handler several times in frustration, anger and pain. He needed to feel physical pain before the emotional pain consumed him._

Bernael laughed silently watching Samuel pound his head into the wall. It was so good to see him yelling into the air. He could almost taste the pain that emanated from Samuel. Using a bit of his demon energy Bernael helped slam Samuel's head harder into the wall.

Matt whispered urgently "Sammy stop! Please stop before you do damage to your head." He watched as Sam's head hit harder. Matt yelled "STOP NOW THAT'S AN ORDER!"

 _Sam ceased banging his head. He still wanted too but something made him stop. Sam dropped his head into his hands as his thoughts turned to Matt "Matt it hurts. I don't know what to do. It hurts so badly. I should have been able to save him. Darren didn't have to die. It's not like he was on fire and surrounded by terrorists."_

Matt wrapped his wings around Sam and held him. He whispered "I know it hurts buddy. Lean on your chosen family. Listen to them. They can help you. Don't leave the team. You belong. You belong here. I promise it gets better. You just have to have patience and hope. Your beauty of life is here. Hold on. Lean on them. Trust them. Please Sammy."

* * *

 _ **SRU HQ – Men's Locker Room**_

 _Sam made a decision on the roof. He quickly packed his locker and grabbed his change of clothes and headed to the shower. He did not belong here. He put his team at risk. He could not live with himself if they died or were hurt because he lost objectivity. He had failed the team today. He had failed Darren today. He would leave SRU and his team would be okay. He was a danger to them and he did not belong here._

Nanael watched Sam pack. Spike was an emotional wreck inside. He left Spike in the shower with words to let the warm water relax him and everything would be alright.

But now Nanael saw Sam was taking action and he was preparing to actually leave. They were not just idle words Sam threw out in the briefing room. If Sam left, Nanael was certain Spike would leave too.

He knew that Spike would not be able to do this job anymore and he would most likely take the CSIS up on the constant job offers. Spike needed Sam more than Sam knew. Sam is who grounded Spike, like Lou had done before. Right now Spike's head was swimming with self-recriminations for Lou and Sam.

Nanael looked at Matt and said "Spike needs Sam to stay."

Matt nodded "I'm working on it. He is stubborn as a mule when he gets certain thoughts in his head."

Barrattiel smiled despite the situation "Sam is as mule headed as Wordy is hard-headed. How can we help?"

His face screwing up in thought Matt finally said "Get Spike and Wordy to unpack his gear and put it all back in the locker while he is in the shower."

Nanael perked up. That would help Spike. He needed an action to get his head out of his self-loathing. An action helping Sam would be the best. "I can do that" Nanael stated with a smile.

"Wordy would very open to that suggestion right now" Barrattiel stated. When Wordy was out of the shower and dressing he would begin whispering to him.

* * *

 _ **SRU HQ – Men's Shower**_

Matt watched as Sam rinsed and wrung out Darren's blood from his t-shirt. The non-emotional mask Sam had slipped on worried him greatly. But the two words repeating in Sam's head worried him more.

Bernael still remained cloaked as he whispered to Sam "You failed. They don't want you. You failed. They don't want you. You failed. They don't want you."

 _I failed, I failed, I failed, repeated in Sam's head as he twisted his shirt and watched the blood run down the drain._

Matt had been so happy when Hamon told him that Sam had left the pearl handled colt in the gun case that Ed bought him. Matt was worried that the gun was coming out tonight although he would not give voice to that thought right now.

He decided to try and counter Sam's internal dialog with his own two word chant hoping it would get through "You belong, You belong. You belong."

* * *

 _ **SRU HQ – Women's Locker Room**_

Rahmiel watched Jules as she sat on the bench. Jules was whirling inside. She was thinking that if she had gotten Darren's personnel file sooner she could have warned Sam that Darren was suicidal and not giving up but wanted them to kill him. Jules was also very worried Sam was really leaving and she could not stop him.

Floating close to Jules, Rahmiel whispered "Sam needs you now. You need to show him he belongs. Do not let him go. He needs you. Go to the men's locker room now."

 _Jules sat up and looked at Leah. Then she stood and headed out. She had a gut feeling she needed to be in the men's locker room. Sam's bombshell reaction worried her._

 _She knew that they had all gotten to the point of leaving before. This job was hard and they did not get to win every time. They were only human and they made mistakes and missed cues. Sam had made a real connection._

 _Sam was improving with his negotiation skills, still needed lots of work, but he was better than he thought he was. Jules needed Sam to know that. And to know she was here for him. She could wait no longer. She had to take action and make sure that Sam knew he could count on her; that she would not abandon him._

 _Leah stood "Where are you going Jules?"_

 _Jules didn't even stop as she replied "Where I need to be."_

Duma whispered to Leah "Go with Jules. Show them you are part of this team by helping them with Sam."

 _Leah jogged out of the locker room following Jules._

* * *

 _ **SRU HQ – Just Outside the Men's Shower**_

Karael watched Ed closely as he leaned on the lockers outside the showers. He and Hasdiel had quickly conversed while Ed and Greg dressed. Greg and Ed had seen Sam's gear all packed up and it impacted both of them. Hasdiel had suggested that he whisper to Ed to invite Sam to the meeting that Ed and Greg went to sometimes. They agreed that Sam would probably be more receptive to Ed than Greg at the moment.

Right now Hasdiel was whispering to Greg to go arrange an earlier end of shift on Friday so they would not miss the meeting. Karael was certain Hasdiel would be successful with Greg and Commander Holleran would always be willing to help out Sam. Norm didn't show it in the barn but he dearly loved his godson. It was one reason he had fast-tracked Sam onto Team One.

As Karael watched Ed and listened to Ed's thoughts, he knew that Ed needed to go to the meeting too. Ed was having a difficult time coming to terms with how his actions hurt Sam and drove Sam to want to leave SRU. Ed needed to do something to help Sam. Helping Sam see he belonged would help Ed to assuage his own unjust feelings of guilt.

This was not Ed's fault. Karael needed Ed to see and accept that. He whisper "Ed, invite Sam to the meeting. It's time you went too. You need to listen to your own advice too. Just because you do right does not mean you feel right. And you cannot save everyone. Those are the facts of your job. Help Sam see that again. He is lost and hurting right now. Be there for him. Help him see he belongs and he can get through this."

 _Ed was leaning against the lockers waiting for Sam with his arms crossed. He had two purposes. Slow Sam down so Wordy, Spike and Jules could put his stuff back into the locker. They needed a physical statement that Sam belonged here. And two, Sam needed help coping._

 _As Sam came around the corner Ed said "Doesn't get any easier."_

 _Sam tried to walk right past Ed. But Ed's words stopped him and he started to turn back towards him._

 _Ed stepped away from the lockers turned towards Sam. He thought, good, Sam stopped. Ed continued "We don't get to win every time."_

 _Sam turned his head, his eyes downcast. He closed them briefly and could not look directly at Ed._

 _His voice a little rough with emotion and concern but soft Ed said "You got to be at peace with who you are to get through that. There's a bunch of guys I know … they're cops and military guys. We meet up and talk and we help each other kept it together."_

 _At military guys Ed saw he had Sam. Sam actually met his eyes for a second before looking away again. It was a good sign to Ed that Sam was listening. Maybe. Just maybe he would be able to get Sam to go with him and Greg._

 _Ed looked directly at Sam and finished "Greg and I are going Friday night." Then he started to walk away as he added "You should come."_

 _He continued toward the locker room. Ed knew he had to walk carefully with Sam. He could not push hard on this or demand that Sam attend. Ed knew if it were him, he would tell people to bug-off if they tried to force him to go to a support group._

 _It was only Greg's gentle offer several years ago that got him to consider going. Once Ed went he saw that it could be helpful. He helped and got help at the same time. Ed hoped that Sam would chose to join them on Friday._

Bernael whispered to Sam "You don't need a stupid support group of whiny, crying, wimps. Go it alone like you always have. Ed is just butting in where he is not needed. Don't listen to him. He did not order you to go so you don't have to. Ignore Ed."

 _Sam turned watching Ed walk away. He never knew that Ed and Greg went to a support group. Not that Ed called it that, but that was essentially what it was. Sam was not sure he could do that. He always processed his thoughts alone. He did not need a support group to keep it together as Ed said._

Matt whispered "Ed is reaching out to you Sam. You need to consider going. It could really help you. Like when you talked to me and the unit after you were tortured. We listened and it helped you to share your pain. To give it a voice so you could release it and begin to heal. The guys in this support group with listen. Please Sammy listen to Ed."

 _Sam thought at least Ed did not push and demand he go. It was only a suggestion. He did not have to go, especially since he was leaving. He did not belong here._

 _He got that they could not win every time. But this time. This time they should have won. He knew Darren. He knew the feelings. He knew what Darren was going through. He should have connected._

 _Sam sighed and finally he slowly followed Ed into the locker room. A thought entered his head. Even if he was leaving SRU maybe he should go. What would be the harm in going? But then another thought entered his head, would he appear weak if he went? Another warring thought entered, Ed and Sarge go and they are not weak._

 _The multitude of conflicting feelings was wearing on him. Sam decided he could decide later if he would go or not. He had made no commitment to Ed one way or another._

Matt smiled at Karael, "I think Ed planted the seed. Right now Sam is resistant but because Ed did not push or demand I think Sam might come around and go with them."

Karael nodded "Those two are so much alike it is scary. It is a source of all their head-butting. But I'm glad that Ed managed to handle it this way. He needs Sam to go almost as much as he needs to go himself."

"I can see that. It will do Greg good too. We can all see he is upset he did not hear the suicide intention earlier and put Sam in that situation" Matt said.

* * *

 _ **SRU HQ – Men's Locker Room**_

 _Sam rounded the corner and the first thing he saw was that everything had been put back into his locker where it belonged. Then he saw Jules leaning on a locker and Ed, Wordy, Sarge, Spike and Leah standing in a semi-circle at the end of the row of lockers. They were all looking at him._

 _His eyes landed on Jules first. The look she gave him was one of understanding not pity. She saw his pain and would offer him comfort if he asked. But he would not ask this time. He had failed Jules when she needed him. He didn't deserve her comfort right now._

 _Then he looked at each of the guys._

 _Their faces were mostly blank with straight mouths. Wordy's eyes looked at him a moment then cast down. Sarge's eyes were soft and tender like they got when he was worried about the team. Spike seemed nervous and his eyes flicked to Jules for reassurance. He spared a glance at Leah and registered only mild curiosity. Like she was waiting to see what he would do._

 _Sam looked back at his locker. The team was making a statement. They did not want him to go. He wasn't sure what to do or what to think._

Matt whispered "They want you here, Sammy. You are part of the family. Stay. Close your locker and stay. You belong here. Your Beauty is here. They will help you if you let them."

 _Sam grabbed his duffel bag off the bench. He looked at the team as his head slightly bobbed up and down turning to look at his locker. He stepped forward and tossed his bag into the locker and reached for one of the doors. He closed his locker._

 _Turning to the team, Sam gave them a brief small smile to deflect how he really felt. Which was still so conflicted. He moved towards the team and the exit._

 _As Sam came alongside Jules, she put her hand on the back of Sam's shoulder and gave him a quick gentle touch. As Sam continued moving Wordy put his hand on Sam's other shoulder and the team all headed out of the locker room._

 _None of the team knew if Sam would really stay but they had hope. They would do all in their power to make him see he belonged._

Bernael grimaced. He was going to have to work really hard to get Samuel to hear him. Damn, these angels we just as hard to thwart as Samuel's family and his unit angels. But Bernael would not give up.

He rubbed his hand excitedly at his next thought. Bernael would send nightmares to Samuel. He was so very good at invading Samuel's dreams. He had loads of practice. Bernael faded and went to wait for Samuel at his apartment.

Hasdiel put his hand on Matt's back said "Our hands are always on your back and Sam's too. Together we will see him through this trial. Evil may be strong but Team One Guardian Angels and Team One are stronger. We will not let Sam fall into darkness."

Matt smiled as he looked at all the Guardian Angels. He knew thanks were not needed but he said "I appreciate all the help."

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* * *

 _ **AN:**_ _Hope you liked this one. It was a little tough for me to write since it incorporated so much of an actual episode. I tried to make it a full fledged story with new content. Hope I did it justice too._

 _ **Thank you to all who continually drop me a review. I truly appreciate each one and they add sunshine to my day.**_

 _I would also love to hear from my mostly silent majority too. **Please consider letting me know what you thought of this story.** Who knows, your comment might influence a story as __**twifantasyfan's** comment did. This story was all written without a fallen angel. Then I got a simple PM from __twifantasyfan and low and behold this story got an added dimension (and in my humble opinion got better) with Bernael._

 _ **FYI:** If you want the details on the angels c_ _heck out chapter 10 of the_ _ **Beauty of Life Reference.**_ _It gives the meanings of the angel/fallen angels names, defines Guardian Angels for all if Team One, the main Braddocks and Sam's Unit buddies. It also explains the Archangels in my series. I will keep it updated as new/different angels are added to stories._


	9. Drawing Sam & Telling Stories

**Drawing Sam & Telling Stories **

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_**Setting:**_ _Post Series: Dr. Mathieu Chasseur's Home._

 _ **Companion Piece:**_ _Enemy of My Enemy,_ _Chapter 17._

 _ **Guardian Angels: Sam Chasseur**_ _(_ _Louise_ _),_ _ **Phillip**_ _(Mathieu)_

* * *

 _ **Dr. Mathieu Chasseur's Home – La Dore**_

Sam Chasseur floated near his sister. It made him sad to watch her cry. Dad was doing his best with Louise but so was he. It wasn't his fault that Louise saw him. It wasn't supposed to happen. But it did.

 _Louise cried "Papa, je dis la vérité. Sam était là. Il a besoin d'aide."  
(Daddy I'm telling the truth. Sam was there. He needs help.)_

 _Mathieu paced in frustration "Louise vous avez besoin de se calmer. Je dois y aller. Il y a une attente patiente."  
(Louise you need to calm down. I have to go. There is a patient waiting.)_

" _Attends, laisse-moi dessiner une image de Sam. Vous me croirez alors" Louise pleaded.  
(Wait, let me draw a picture of Sam. You will believe me then.)_

Sam looked to Phillip, his father's Guardian Angel, and said "Whisper to him to wait. This is too important. Louise is being truthful."

Phillip whispered "Wait Mathieu. Wait."

 _Mathieu stopped pacing and said "Dessine l'image. J'attendrai."  
(Draw the picture. I will wait.)_

 _He sat down and waited patiently. It was the only thing he could think of to calm her down. When she finished the picture of Sam he intended to show her the likeness of her brother by making her look at the picture of her brother on her desk. Although at seven he wasn't so sure what her drawing would look like._

 _Mathieu pulled out his phone to call Jean-Marc to let him know he was going to be later and that if he could he should take a look at the patient that was waiting._

Sam floated over to Louise's desk. He watched her sketch out the rough shape of Sam's face. It was not quite right.

He whispered "Lou Lou, his lips are fuller than that. They are not thin like mine."

 _Louise looked to her left and smiled. She wanted to say hi to Sammy but Daddy was in the room. So she only nodded and then fixed the lips._

" _Je serai bientôt de retour je juste besoin de parler à grand-père Jean-Marc" Mathieu said to Louise and then stepped from the room to explain what was going on with Louise.  
(I'll be right back I just need to talk to grandpa Jean-Marc)_

Sam then said "His jaw was more chiseled." He continued to guide Louise's drawing giving her specifics.

As Louise added color to the drawing, Sam thought back to meeting Sam's guardian angel Matt and he smiled. Such coincidences. His dad's name was the same as Matt's, only in French. Mathieu Chasseur equaled Matthew Hunter in English. Then there was his name Samuel and Samuel. The last bit really made him smile; Louise Yvonne was the mother's name of the guardian angel and mother's name of his charge. There could be no more pointers to it being destiny that they should meet.

He wished he had been paying more attention when Sam said his last name. He could have whispered it to Louise and saved Louise so much pain. Once Dad saw the picture he would know Louise was not talking about him but this other Sam. He would believe her then.

Sam understood why his dad did not believe her. Louise being able to see him complicated things. She was so young and did not understand yet that she could not talk to their parents about him like he was still alive. And those stories, well they were his fault.

But he could not deny her when she asked for a story. He had been telling her stories from the time she was born. Sam loved to tell Louise stories and in some ways he was so glad she could still see him and hear the stories. But it did complicate Louise's life and make things difficult on his parents too.

Sam looked at the finished product and whispered "That is beautiful work Lou Lou. God has given you a talent for a reason."

 _Louise looked at Sammy. Since Daddy was not in the room she said "Sammy thank you for helping me."_

Grinning, Sam said "You did the work Lou Lou. All I did was, remind you of a few details."

" _Sammy, tell me a story" Louise begged._

 _The door opened and her dad came back in. Mathieu asked "Avez-vous fini?"  
(Are you finished?)_

 _Louise turned and said "Oui papa" as she held up the picture.  
(Yes Daddy)_

 _Mathieu's jaw dropped open. He stumbled out "Voilà qui vous rencontré?"  
(That is who you met?)_

" _Oui Papa est ce Sam. Je ne me rappelle pas le nom at-il dit. Me crois-tu maintenant?" Louise stated.  
(Yes Daddy this is Sam. I don't remember the last name he said. Do you believe me now?)_

 _Mathieu came forward and took the picture from Louise. He was in shock for two reasons. First he was expecting the picture to have thin narrow features and a long Anglican nose. He expected Sam to have shoulder length dark brown hair, hazel eyes and darker skin. Mathieu had expected it to resemble his son, Samuel Mathieu Chasseur._

 _But it didn't. It was clearly someone else. And by the looks of what she drew, the black eye and bruises on the jaw, this man was beat up pretty badly._

 _Secondly, the quality of the picture astounded him. He never knew Louise had such talent. Her drawing was portrait like. The details were so life like. This was no simple kids' drawing._

Phillip whispered to Mathieu "Take the picture with you and go now. It is important that you get to the clinic. Hurry. Hurry now, a man's life depends on you."

Sam floated to the edge of Louise's desk. His father was in shock. It was clear on his face. He watched as his dad said a quick goodbye to Louise and said he would be home later and they would talk. Sam smiled as his dad did what Phillip whispered to him, took the picture and left the house quickly.

He turned to Louise and said "So you wanted a story huh. Well let me see. Okay, I got one. Once upon a time there was this soldier. He was a really good soldier."

 _Louise brought her knees up on the chair and wrapped her arms around them as she listened to Sammy start his story. She interrupted "What was the soldier's name?"_

Sam chuckled, "Sam of course Lou Lou. Now don't interrupt. So this soldier, Sam, was in Special Forces. He was a sniper. One day he climbed up in this tree to cover the men in his unit. He climbed really high up. Well wouldn't you know it, being so high up in the tree was a good thing and he was able to see the bad guys before they could hurt his unit. He saved his unit from the bad guys."

 _Interrupting again Louise asked "What were the names of his unit?"_

Thinking about it a moment Sam finally said "The commander was named Fire. The second in command was named Air. The rest of the unit were named Mathieu, Grizzly, Doc and Shorty."

 _Louise giggled and said "You come up with the funniest names. Everyone but Sam and Mathieu that is."_

Sam wanted to tousle Louise's hair like he used too but he settled for teasing her "Lou Lou, if you're gonna keep interrupting I'll never get to the good parts of the story and I'll have to stop."

 _Louise made a zipping motion with her fingers across her mouth then just waited for Sam to continue. She loved listening to Sam's stories. They were always exciting and daring. She liked that he always named the hero Sam._

Sam continued "Okay so Sam was high up in a tree. He saved Fire, Air, Mathieu, Grizzly, Doc and Shorty. But the bad guys were firing back at them. Sam had to get out of the tree fast. But his line got tangled and he ended up all twisted up and hanging upside down. The bad guys were still coming so he had to fire at them upside down."

"The bad guys got scared and ran away. But Sam was stuck up in the tree. He needed help getting down. Well Fire sent up Mathieu and Shorty to help him down. Shorty didn't like climbing up high. But he went because Sam needed his help and he was the only one small enough to get to where Sam was without the branches breaking."

Sam concluded "Well they got him out of the tree finally. They all had a good laugh that Sam could shoot so well even upside down. He saved them all by scaring off all the bad guys that day."

 _Louise looked longingly at Sammy as she said "I wish you were still here. I miss you Sammy. Why did you have to die?"_

Floating close to Louise he said "So I could be your guardian angel Lou Lou. You are destined to do great things and I'll be here to protect you." He reached out and used a massive amount of ethereal energy as he tousled her hair for the very first time.

 _Louise's eyes went wide "I felt that Sammy. You touched my hair."_

Having used so much energy to tousle Louise's hair Sam began to fade.

" _Don't go. Don't go Sammy" Louise cried as tears welled up._

Sam whispered "I need to go for a bit but I'll be back Lou Lou. I'll be with you always. Always." Then he faded into nothingness to recharge.

 _Louise reached out for her photo of Sammy and her. It was taken the day before he died. She held it close to her heart as she cried. She missed Sammy being here and alive so she could hug him and he could tickle her and all the other fun stuff they used to do together._

 _She whispered to the photo "I love you Sammy. Thank you for telling me a story. But I gotta stop retelling them to Mommy and Daddy. The stories will have to stay just between you and me now."_

.

* * *

 _ **AN:**_ _Hope you liked this one. Please drop me a review and me know what you thought._


	10. Earning His Wings

**Earning His Wings**

* * *

Here are the first two chapters of **GUARDIANS Mission to Rescue Innocence**. I am still hard at work on the seventh book ... sorry don't have a release date yet, but I do now have a Facebook page where I will announce the book release date when I get closer. I may post other little tidbits there too. You can find my page on facebook by searching for AuthorLauraActon. The first six books are all available on Amazon, just search Laura Acton.

* * *

 **Summary:** Matt's POV of his death and other things. For those that have read my published work, you will know who Pletcher is ... for the others ... hmmm I'm tempted to say buy the books and find out ... but I'm nice so ... he is another bad guy.

Names have been changed to reflect FP names.

.

* * *

 _ **December 25**_  
 _ **General Braddock's Home – Library – 11:59 p.m.**_

Matt Hunter folded his wings and crouched before Sam Braddock who slept peacefully on the couch. Sam's parents left a few moments ago after General Braddock slipped a pillow under his son's head, lightly stroked Sammy's blond hair, and whispered goodnight. His mother adjusted the blanket and kissed his cheek as she told him she loved him. A scene which warmed Matt's heart.

"Merry Christmas, Sammy. I'm happy you found your way home, but my wish is for you to heal completely. I'm begging you to forgive yourself for my death. It. Was. Not. Your. Fault." Tears welled in Matt's eyes as he lay a hand over his dog tags which nestled near Sam's heart. A golden light began to glow. "Please heal, brother."

Sammy's soul-deep remorse remained as palpable and intense a year and a half later as on the day Matt died. Matt worried he might never be able to assuage Sam's agony so his heart would become whole. Nothing Matt did replaced the missing pieces. As his brother slept, Matt sank to the floor and stared at him. "I'm supposed to protect you. Lord knows I try. How do I safeguard you from yourself, from your own demons?"

A light glowed next to him, and a wan smile appeared regardless of the distress he felt. "Hello, Mom."

"Hello, my sweet boy." Louise Hunter wrapped her arms and wings around her son and held him. Softly she sang 'Amazing Grace,' to ease his burdens. When she finished, she said, "Do not give up hope. One day Samuel will heal. Trust that his path must be what it is for the greater good."

Matt wiped his eyes as he gazed upon his beautiful mother. "I understand. Doesn't make it any easier to accept. Though, I'm glad I was chosen to be his guardian angel." Turning back to Sammy, a bittersweet memory filtered in.

* * *

 ** _Matt's Memory – Nineteen Months Ago – May 26_**  
 ** _Kandahar – Terrorist Stronghold_**

Master Corporal Matt Hunter crouched down behind the low wall where Major Plouffe directed him to stay. A last-minute order he disagreed with but kept his mouth shut because the major was a legendary pain in the ass if anyone so much as hinted at questioning his commands. This was a rotten position regardless of the major's desire to ensure eyes on the primary target.

Plouffe's tactical abilities were abysmal. He wished his CO had been there to countermand the idiot, but with a still mending ankle, Blaze was spotting for Sammy and Watchdog today, and they had already moved into position. Matt blew out a breath and switched to the frequency Plouffe ordered so he could provide an ongoing sitrep to the damned major.

This is not the way I expected to spend my thirty-first birthday. Damn Plouffe for cutting our leave short for this mission. What the hell is Plouffe even doing leading this one? Glory Hog. Yeah, this is a big-time player and a feather in someone's cap, but couldn't he just send us and take credit after like always?

Matt hated this exposed position. He scanned, hoping if he remained still none of the targets would notice him. His eyes landed on the main target. The covert operative, Pletcher, identified this cell as being involved in the ongoing arms thefts. When Pletcher received intel the cell would be moving, a joint op with Blaze's and Hammer's units was hastily cobbled together. Pletcher insisted they must strike now or chance losing them to the wind again.

Staring at the man, Matt knew Sam wouldn't miss his target. He's the best sniper in the world. That thought brought to mind Plouffe's dress down of Sammy last night as they prepped for the mission. Major Plouffe laid into him with gusto when Sam suggested a sniper perch with better visibility.

I swear, the major has it out for Sam. If Blaze had been there, instead of the medical tent with Patch getting a brace for his ankle, Plouffe's tirade wouldn't have been as full of acid. The corners of his mouth lift as he thought, Papa Bear watches over Goldilocks.

Matt's mind turned to the private conversations he and Baboon had over the past couple of weeks. Amazing what fresh eyes see. Nils opinions are logical. We've all been so focused on the general screwing with Sammy. He's right … we've had blinders on. No way a man in his position could … well, yeah, General Braddock could, but it no longer jibes he would do these things to his only son. Could Plouffe be the one behind everything? If so why and how?

Plouffe called out, "Hunter, sitrep," interrupting Matt's thoughts.

"No movement. Eyes still on the principal target," Matt reported. He scanned the area again and spotted someone unexpected. "Wait. Christ! What the hell is he doing here?"

Sitting alone in a Humvee, far from the action, Plouffe smirked. "Hold." He switched channels and depressed the button to speak. "Cleared to fire." Releasing the switch, he listened to Lieutenant Blain relaying his order to both snipers. The reports of the rifle fire caused him to laugh. Returning to the previous frequency, he ordered, "Bug out, now."

"Sir?" Matt asked confused by the change in orders.

"Move your ass. Get out of there now!" Plouffe had to cover his glee with a cough. This would work exactly as he planned. He changed channels again. "He's where we agreed. Take him out."

Matt shifted. How the fuck does he expect me exfil now? Sam and Watchdog have orders to shoot anything that moves—our recon identified only hostiles in the village. He duck-waddled a few paces to the left searching for an option. A searing pain ripped through his abdomen knocking him against the wall. He sucked in a breath as he glanced to the right. Fuck! He shot me! Why? Nowhere to go, he raised his weapon, aiming for a traitor as he rose slightly.

They fired simultaneously as the traitor dove for cover. Another bullet tore through Matt's vest, the pain agonizing. My only chance is to run for it. Matt started to rise as he glimpsed the prime target blown away by a .50 cal.

Sammy! "Oh shit, he never misses!" Matt mouthed quietly as he finished rising as if in slow motion. Unable to change the course of events, knowing his death at the hand of his brother was imminent, Matt's last living thought was one of despair. This is not only going to kill me, it will kill my brother too.

Matt blinked. He felt no pain, none whatsoever. Everything burst into bright, white light with a golden hue. He stood viewing his earthly remains in the dirt. Where his upper torso had been, now a gaping hole, nothing left. Matt then witnessed the strangest thing.

Tiny flecks of gold began rising from all over the dry desert ground. The shimmering speckles formed a stream which headed straight for him. Rooted in place, fascinated as the golden stream entered his chest, understanding dawned in Matt. Fragments of my heart. As the last speck settled into place, a sense of warmth, tranquility, and beauty infused him.

Turning away from the vision of his destroyed body, Matt observed a group of people waiting to greet him. His eyes focused on his beloved mother. She's so radiant.

"Matt, my beloved gift from God, Louise's melodious voice said as she opened her arms to receive him. Pulling him close, she enfolded him with her love and sighed as her son lay his head on her shoulder.

His arms went around his mother automatically and held tightly. She is much smaller than I recall. Happy tears flowed, soaking in the love he sensed as she hugged him. Time held no meaning for him, and he was unsure how long they embraced—he never wanted to let go.

Eventually, she stepped back, and he gazed into her glowing face. Not a single mark on her. With a feather light touch, he brushed his fingers around her eye. The one which had been blackened in the only picture of her he possessed. "So beautiful. Thank you for the music. I missed you, Mom."

Louise caressed Matt's face. "I've always been with you, my sweet boy. Always. There has not been a day I have not whispered to you, Matt."

Matt blinked. "You called me Matt. Twice."

"Yes love, that's your name, isn't it?" Louise responded.

Grinning Matt replied, "Yes. Yes, it is."

Louise smiled sweetly. "You picked a perfect name." Her smile faded a little. "It was my job to prepare you for your life. For your destiny. I'm sorry you experienced so much sorrow and pain. It was necessary."

Matt became confused. Destiny? What destiny? Is pain necessary? What is she talking about? Before he could ask, he was nearly bowled over as a smaller man engulfed him.

When he pulled back, surprise lit his features. "Ripsaw?!"

Beaming brightly, Ripsaw said, "Hey, Matt. Been waiting for you. Would've liked to wait a whole hell … heck of a lot longer, though."

The change of words is what Matt picked up on. Ripsaw's cleaned up his language. He spotted a man and a woman standing behind Ripsaw. Matt wondered who they were.

Noting the direction of Matt's gaze, Ripsaw grinned. "I'd like to introduce you to my parents. Charlotte and Richard Preston, senior."

Charlotte Preston came forward and hugged her son's friend. "What a beautiful idea you had to start the scholarship. The three of you are helping so many with your generosity." She placed her hand over his heart. "You truly have a heart of gold."

A familiar voice boomed behind him, and Matt swiftly pivoted, ending up in another bearhug. Totally overwhelmed, Matt only stared as Yankee said, "Matt! It's been too long, but not long enough."

Bewildered, Matt only nodded.

Yankee released Matt and stepped back. His face shone with a brilliant smile as he spread his wings. "I have someone I want you to meet. Someone extremely special."

A sweet little girl, with waist-length, golden blonde hair, sparkling emerald eyes, and the brightest smile Matt had ever seen approached him. He knelt on one knee to be eye level with her. "Who are you?"

"Who do you think?" A tinkle of a giggle bubbled out as her eyes danced.

Matt's eyes opened wide. "Sara? Sammy's Sara?"

With a nod, Sara wrapped her arms around his neck. "Thank you for taking care of my Sammy."

Matt fell, ending up on his rear as her words slammed into him. Who will care for Sammy now that I'm dead? Tears welled in his eyes as he peered up at Ripsaw and Yankee. He choked out, "Sammy. Oh, dear God, Sammy. This is gonna kill him."

Louise knelt and brushed at the tears streaming down his face. "Hush, all will be alright. Hush. Hamon will protect Sam."

Blinking to clear his eyes, Matt focused on his mom. "Who is Hamon?"

"Sam's guardian angel. At least for now."

"What do you mean? Is Sammy going to die?" Matt asked in a panicked voice.

No one answered Matt They only beamed as a glorious golden-haired angel with broad shoulders and enormous, pure white wings appeared. Matt gaped up at him, drawn to the angel's eyes. They are the same piercing shade of sapphire blue as Sammy's. The lopsided grin on his face so familiar, Matt could've sworn the smile was Sammy's too.

Matt's keen eyes moved from the angel back to his mother, noting her wings for the first time. His gaze shifted to Yankee and Ripsaw, seeing wings. Turning to little Sara, he became confused. She didn't possess wings.

Sara lay a small delicate hand on Matt's cheek, her warmth leaving a pleasant, calming tingling sensation. "I'm not a guardian angel. I don't protect him. We play in his dreams. I try to make him happy when he is sad."

Yankee's face clouded and took on a sorrowful expression. He knelt near Sara as he gently rubbed her back. Tenderly he said, "Poppet, time for you to go now. Your grandmothers are waiting for you."

Tears shimmered in Sara's eyes, and her voice came out plaintive, "My Sammy's not going to die, is he?"

Three more angels appeared, two older ladies Matt didn't recognize and one male he did. Gambit?

Gambit directed a wobbly smile at little Sara. She was so precious, and they all adored her. "Not if I can get Baboon to him quickly, Sara." Redirecting his gaze to Hamon, he said, "They're on their way."

"Okay, Gambit. Thanks."

Gambit spread his wings and headed for his charge, Master Corporal Nils Carsten, code name Baboon.

Ripsaw shifted and Matt noticed he appeared uncomfortable. His gut twisted when he recalled the expression. It was the countenance Ripsaw honed and used every time they dealt with Sammy when he was hurt or came back from being with another unit—one devoid of any emotional triggers.

Hamon reached out and tucked Sara's golden locks behind her ear. His tone soft and gentle he urged her, "Poppet, go with Rosemary and Gwyneth now. I will protect your Sammy as I always do. You will be able to play with him soon."

"Promise?" Sara's said as crocodile tears began to roll down her alabaster cheeks.

"I promise."

Sara gazed at Matt and bravely tried to smile, but sadness permeated her eyes. "Take good care of my Sammy." A small sob emerged as she turned and ran to the two ladies. The one with blue eyes bent down and embraced her before all three faded as if never there.

Confused, Matt watched Sara disappear. What is going on? The most heart-wrenching cry he had ever heard rent the air around him. He whipped his head towards the sound. Matt's jaw dropped and eyes rounded, aghast seeing Sammy on his knees near his earthly body. Sam's head was thrown back as the primal scream of a wounded animal forcefully erupted from him.

Matt yelled, "Nooooooooooo. Sammy, noooo!" His bewildered and agony filled jade eyes turned to his mother. He choked out, "Why did he have to find me? Why?"

* * *

 _ **May 26**_  
 _ **Kandahar – Terrorist Stronghold**_

Louise wrapped her arms around her son, enclosing him in her wings, consoling and shielding him from viewing the brother of his heart and soul. She held Matt while he wept for Sam.

When the screaming ceased, Matt pulled away. He witnessed Sammy cradled in the arms of his angel. Gambit knelt next to Nils Carsten, whispering in Baboon's ear as their unit mate performed CPR on Sammy. His hair ruffled with a strong gust of wind and Matt's gaze traveled in the direction from whence it blew. He gasped as he beheld Yankee and Ripsaw flapping their wings furiously as their hands gripped the shoulders of Blaze and Patch, propelling both men toward Sammy.

Terror raced through Matt as a translucent likeness of Sammy appeared and gazed down at his earthly body. Matt surged to his feet and stormed over to the barely formed ethereal mist. His voice boomed with fury, "It isn't your time! Don't die!"

Sam's head turned to Matt, his disembodied voice dull, "I want to die. I killed you. I blew your heart into a million pieces. I deserve death. I can't live without you."

"No! You didn't kill me! I was already dead." Matt's voice shook with fear. Sammy was not responsible. He had to make him understand.

"I know what I did." Sam pointed to Matt's destroyed body, a gaping hole where his heart should've been. "I did that. I should've realized it was you. I'm sorry. I want to be with you," Sam said lifelessly.

"You can't die. Not now. You need to find the beauty of life. You must live. For me. Please, Sammy, live. Do this for me. Go back. Now! Before it is too late," Matt begged.

"It's peaceful here, Matt. I don't hurt here." Sam sagged and fell to his knees, numb and weary. "No pain."

Matt dropped to his knee, wrapping both arms around Sam's ethereal mist as something strange happened. After his arms enfolded Sammy, so did a pair of pristine wings. Matt held on to Sam, his voice pleading, "Please return. You gotta walk your path. My hand will always be on your back. I'll be here for you, brother. You'll never be alone. I promise. Please, go now."

One moment he embraced Sam and the next he held nothing. Matt gazed down at the ground. Patch pounded on Sammy's chest—once, twice, three times. "I found a pulse. We need air evac now!"

He witnessed Blaze radio for evac, take a knee between his earthly body and Sammy's, and place a hand on their heads. Blaze choked out, "I'm sorry. Oh, God, I gave the all clear. Matt, I'm so sorry. Blondie! Hang on Blondie. Don't die. Please, God, don't take my son from me too."

Time passed, as Matt stared through a fog. His vision blurred and his soul cried out for his brothers' anguish as they knelt, said a final goodbye to him, then lay a hand on Sammy as they waited for the medical evacuation.

When the helicopter landed, Matt observed as Hammer lifted Sammy and carried him as Patch rushed alongside calling out instructions to the crew of medics. Hamon stayed with Sam, holding him and whispering in his ear. Ripsaw floated next to Patch with a hand on his shoulder. Matt's gaze returned to Winds just as his friend pulled Blaze upright and urged him towards the bird. Their angels stayed close to them with supportive hands on their backs as they whispered in their ears.

After the evac helicopter took flight, his mother appeared beside him. Matt turned to her with confusion and tears in his eyes. "What just happened?"

Louise folded her wings, and her hand caressed his cheek. "You earned your wings my son. You passed the first of many tests you must go through to become Sam's guardian angel. I will guide and train you now. When you are ready, you will take over from Hamon."

Incredulous, Matt asked, "What test did I pass?"

"Sam heard you. Your charge must be able to hear you. You spoke to him, and he listened."

"He heard me?" Matt gaped at his mom.

Louise smiled. "In a way. He will not remember it as such. Sam may or may not recall what occurred. Most times our charges do not. Many charges believe we are hallucinations or images created from memories. They dismiss the visions and our guidance as wishful thinking, memories, and such."

Dawning hit Matt. "Like when you sang to me. When the music came to me but there was no music around."

"Yes, my love. Exactly like that."

Matt glanced at the shell of his old body once more. Several unit soldiers reverently placed him into a black bag as Nils stood off to the side crying. Matt wished he could tell him and all the guys he was okay.

Putting her arm around Matt's waist, Louise said, "They will grieve for you, my sweet boy. You had a positive impact on so many people and were so loved. In time, their grief will lessen, but they will never forget you. You made a real difference in the world. It's a better place because you lived."

He studied his mother. "You said you watched over me. Were you my guardian angel?"

"Not at first but when you met Sam, I took over. My job was to prepare you for this. To help you establish the deep connection with him you needed to become his protector and keep him in the light."

Still confused Matt asked, "Is that how guardian angels are selected? They need a personal connection?"

Louise shook her head. "No, not usually, but when it exists it helps. Like with Ripsaw and Patch and with Yankee and Blaze. But no. The link you and Sam share is rare. Extraordinarily rare. In fact, there has not been a pair like the two of you for a millennium."

"Really? Why?"

A beautiful smile graced Louise's face. "Because you are Sam's gift from God, Sam is fated to lead a life filled with many trials and much pain. He is a favored son of God, as you are. His life will positively impact millions. For every life Sam saves from harm, for each person he stops from committing a heinous crime, there are a multitude of souls he touches. By protecting one little girl in an alleyway and killing the man who holds her, Sam will safeguard so many he will never know about."

Intrigued, Matt listened but didn't quite understand. "How?"

Louise thought a moment, trying to determine how best to enlighten her son. "Let's take the young girl I mentioned. If Sara Clarry is saved by Sam, he sustains the life of the woman who is in charge of caring for her. If Sam doesn't protect the lass, her caretaker will be so consumed by guilt, and she will commit suicide. If she does all who love and care about her will be affected.

"His act will preserve the girl's family too because if she dies, her family will shatter to pieces. Her grandmother, Lois Clarry, a nurse, will be devastated and stop tending to others. She won't be around to care for many patients, and consequently, their families will be negatively impacted. It goes on and on to touch hundreds of lives.

"And if we look at the man he needs to kill to save the child. As difficult as that will be for Sam, the result is a corrupted soul will be gone and can no long wreak havoc in more lives. If Ted Jitters lives, he will go on a drug-induced killing spree killing a dozen more innocents."

Louise grasped her son's hand. "What I'm endeavoring to explain is things are interconnected. Sam's destiny is to directly protect thousands of innocent souls and indirectly safeguard millions."

Matt nodded starting to understand. "You said Sammy is favored. Me too. If we are so favored why did we experience so much pain? Mom, you were murdered before my very eyes. My father strangled the life out of you, and all I could do was watch. Sara died right in front of Sammy, and his family essentially disowned him. Why?"

A male voice spoke from behind Matt. "Samuel's family didn't disown him. Your heart knows the truth. You've known for a while, yet your mind had not accepted the reality. The same is true for Samuel. We can't control humanity, only attempt to guide them. There is both good and evil in this world. We do our best to help fight evil and keep our charges safe and in the light, but we cannot make them do anything. They possess free will."

Matt turned to the new voice. "Who are you?"

"I'm Patrick Ferguson, William Braddock's guardian angel."

"General Braddock's?" Matt stared struggling to process everything.

Patrick nodded.

Louise said, "People have the freedom to choose, and their decisions take them down either light or dark paths. True evil exists and is strongest in the dark." She squeezed his hand and gazed into Matt's eyes. "Sam is from a family of protectors. They have been guardians for a more than a millennium and are descendants of Hamon. You too are Hamon's descendant but from a different branch of the family tree. Our branch are bringers of light. We shield and defend their souls as they walk the earth."

Matt reeled. Me and Sammy descended from the glorious angel?

Louise sighed and smiled. "You have much to learn. I will teach you and continue to prepare you to take over from Hamon soon. Sam will be entering an extremely dark period, and you and Hamon are going to have to work tirelessly to save his soul."

Matt turned to Patrick. "So, Sam's mom and dad truly don't hate him or blame him for Sara's death?"

Patrick shook his head sadly. "No, they never hated him. They love him unconditionally. They always have and always will. I tried to whisper to William how to reach Samuel, but he's stubborn and asserts his self-determination often. William has done many things to try to help his son, but most interactions with Samuel tend to backfire. A stubborn but not a stupid man, he now remains and acts in the background, facilitating others to aid Samuel."

"Let me show you." Patrick touched his fingertips to Matt's forehead, and they radiated a luminous golden light as he transferred images and memories of Samuel's life from William's perspective.

Matt blew out a breath. "Poor, Sammy. How can I help him?"

Louise warmly smiled. "You started on earth. You shared the gift of music. You spoke to him often about the beauty of life. You taught him tools he uses to cope. You will continue to protect Sam's innocence, and prevent his soul from falling into the precipice of darkness." She kissed his cheek. "I love you, son. Your purpose is to keep Sam in the light so he can travel his path."

Warmth and serenity settled around Matt. I'm Sammy's guardian angel. A nervous expression covered his face as he spread his wings for the first time and tried flapping them. Wings for someone that hates to fly … of all the ironies of life.

"You'll get the hang of it soon." A mother's grin broke out as her son wobbled as he attempted to hover, almost like a drunk trying to walk.

This isn't so bad … not as scary as flying in a metal tube. He listed to the left and dropped when he didn't flap properly. An old memory popped into Matt's head causing him to burst into joyful laughter. "Oh boy, hope I learn to fly better than Sammy drives tanks."

Louise's melodious giggle joined her son's hearty laughter. "Come, my sweet boy. I have much to teach you before you can assist Sam."

* * *

 _ **Present – December 26**_  
 _ **General Braddock's Home – Library – 1:10 a.m.**_

Matt's thoughts faded as he gazed at his brother. "Someday you will learn the truth. Until then, be brave and remember I am here for you." He stopped speaking when Natalie entered the room.

A mischievous smile on her face, Natalie lightly padded across the carpet to the sofa. In her hand, she clutched a plush animal. Crouching down in front of Sam, she stifled a giggle. She and cohorts, Vicky, Ashely, and Amelia, found the perfect thing while the boys were out yesterday afternoon. They searched through several boxes in the attic after talking to Mom.

After hearing about all Sam's mishaps with SRU in the days leading up to Christmas, the girls couldn't resist. She carefully lifted the blanket and tucked the animal into Sam's arms. This will be a hoot when he wakes up and finds this in his arms. Lowering the covers and tucking them in, Natalie brushed a slight kiss on her brother's cheek. "Sweet dreams. Love ya, Sammy."

Matt chuckled as Natalie left the room. The stuffed animal is absolutely perfect. "Well, Sammy boy, you certainly lucked out with sisters. Both have hearts of gold and love you dearly, as you deserve. Can't wait to see your reaction."

.

* * *

Hope you enjoyed a little sneak peek. Now I'm going back to writing chapter 12. Oh one note, if you purchased FORSAKEN, I re-edited it and you can download an updated cope in Manage your Devices on Amazon.


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